A Treatise on Cosmic Fire by Alice A.
Bailey, 1925 THOUGHT AND FIRE ELEMENTALS
Twelfth printing, 1982 (3rd Paperback Edition)
948 A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
light which intensifies the maya already created. This
secondary reflection has been produced by man himself
in the evolutionary attempt to balance the pairs of oppo-
sites, and has produced a condition which must be sur-
mounted before the true occult balancing begins. It
might be regarded as the sumtotal of that great mani-
festation (created only by man) called "The Dweller on
the Threshold."
One of the greatest impediments upon the Path of
Return and one for which man is distinctly responsible
within occult limits are those animated forms which he
has produced ever since the middle of the Atlantean root
race when the mind factor began slowly to assume in-
creasing importance. The selfishness, the sordid mo-
tives, the prompt response to evil impulses for which the
human race has been distinguished has brought about a
condition of affairs unparalleled in the system. A gi-
gantic thought form hovers over the entire human
family, built by men everywhere during the ages, ener-
gized by the insane desires and evil inclinations of all
that is worst in man's nature, and kept alive by the
promptings of his lower desires. This thought form has
to be broken up and dissipated by man himself during
the latter part of this round before the conclusion of the
cycle, and its dissipation will be one of the forces tending
to the production of interplanetary pralaya. It is this
piece of creative bungling, if so it might be called, which
the Great Ones are occupied in destroying. Under the
Law of Karma it has to be dissipated by those who have
created it; the work of the Masters has to be carried on,
therefore, indirectly, and must take the form of illumi-
nating the sons of men in gradually increasing degree,
so that they can see clearly this "Dweller on the Thresh-
old" of the new life, and the antagonist who stands be-
tween the fourth kingdom of nature and the fifth. Every
time a son of man stands upon the Probationary Path
951
nearer to the physical plane, and in their descent assume
a steadily increasing control of the lunar natures, the
thoughts and desires of men are consequently purified
and refined. The solar fires put out the lunar light, and
the lower nature is eventually purified and transmuted.
In time the solar Angels blaze forth in all their glory
through the medium of the lower nature on the physical
plane, that lower nature providing fuel to the flames.
The hated "Dweller on the Threshold" thus gradually
dies for lack of sustenance, and disintegrates for lack of
vitality, and man is set free.
b. At present much of the manipulation of mental
matter and its direction into forms of some kind or an-
other emanates from lower levels, and is the result of
powerful desire based on physical attraction. The desire
bodies, and not the mental bodies of the majority of men
are the most powerful, and set up such a strong vibra-
tion (due to the force of two groups of lunar lords) that
the third group of lunar entities who construct the mental
body are swept into a willing response, and the whole
threefold lower nature is immediately engaged in the dire
process of feeding the dreaded "Dweller." This direc-
tion of energy follows the line of least resistance. One
of the primary works of the Ego, as we well know, is to
impose a new rhythm upon his shadow and reflection,
the lower man, and it is this imposition which in time
deflects energy away from man's distorted creation and
brings his vibration into tune with that of his solar Angel.
The devas who are the sumtotal of the energy of sub-
stance itself care not what form they build. They are
The Ego, or Solar Angel is imprisoned.––S. D., I, 621.
a. It has to liberate itself from the thraldom of sensuous perception.
b. It has to see in the light of the one Reality.
c. See S. D., II, 578.
d. To redeem humanity.––S. D., II, 257.
e. To endow him with human affections and aspirations.––S. D., II, 257.
f. They give to men intelligence and consciousness.––S. D., I, 204.
952 A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
irresponsibly responsive to energy currents, and theirs
is not the problem of dealing with sources of energy.
Therefore, the place of man in the cosmic plan becomes
more vital and apparent when it is realized that one of
his main responsibilities is the direction of energy cur-
rents from the mental plane, and the creation of that
which is desired on higher levels. Men, as a whole, are
undergoing evolutionary development in order that they
may become conscious creators in matter. This involves
A realization of the archetypal plan,
An understanding of the laws governing the building
processes of nature,
A conscious process of willing creation, so that man
cooperates with the ideal, works under law, and pro-
duces that which is in line with the planetary plan,
and which tends to further the best interests of the race,
A comprehension as to the nature of energy, and an
ability to direct energy currents, to disintegrate (or
withdraw energy from) all forms in the three worlds,
An appreciation of the nature of the devas, their con-
stitution and place as builders, and of the words and
sounds whereby they are directed and controlled.
When the energy currents of the human family are
directed from egoic levels only, when desire is trans-
muted, and the fifth principle awakened and finally illu-
minated by the sixth, then and only then will the strength
of the impulse emanating from lower levels die out and
the "Dweller on the Threshold" (who now haunts the
human family) likewise die. In other words, when the
dense physical body of the planetary Logos (composed
of matter of the three worlds of human endeavor) is
completely purified and vitalized by the force of the life
flowing from etheric levels, and when all His centers
(formed of human units) are fully awakened, then will
THOUGHT AND FIRE ELEMENTALS 953
those centers be channels for pure force and such an
entity as the ""Dweller" be an impossibility.
All that I have here said anent this "Dweller on the
Threshold" of the Path between the two great kingdoms,
the fourth and the fifth, can be studied by the student
with a personal application. Facing each earnest aspir-
ant to the Mysteries is that vitalized form which he has
himself constructed and nourished during the course of
his previous incarnations, and which represents the sum-
total of his evil desires, motives and thoughts. For ages
is has vampirized him, and for ages it has represented
that which he has failed to achieve. It affects not only
himself but also all those units whom he contacts and
meets. In its destruction he has to pursue methods simi-
lar to those followed by the Great Ones, and through the
increasing power of his solar Angel through the force
of his Ego, and through a study of law, the knowledge of
the power of sound, and the control of speech, he
eventually bring about its disintegration. The old Com-
mentary says:
"The solar angel must put out the light of the lunar angels
and then for lack of warmth and light, that which has served to
hinder no longer is."
c. As yet but few of the human family work deliber-
ately and consciously in mental matter only. The energy
exerted by men is mostly kama-manasic or desire coupled
with lower mind, with a preponderance, as might be ex-
pected, of desire force. This is to be inferred from the
second statement. The whole trend of evolution is to
bring about ability to build in mental matter, and two
things lie ahead of the race:
First. The gradual dissipation of the indefinite masses
of kama-manasic matter which surround practically
every unit of the human family producing a condition of
murkiness and fog within, and around, each aura. Grad-
 THOUGHT AND FIRE ELEMENTALS 1017
tratma or thread, and sever all connection with the low-
est sheath. This lowest sheath then may persist for a
short time, according to the strength of the animal life,
but more probably death would immediately ensue.4
Several magicians have perished thus.
RULE IX. Condensation next ensues. The fire and
waters meet, the form swells and grows. Let the
magician set his form upon the proper path.
This rule is very briefly summed up in the injunction:
Let desire and mind be so pure and so equally appor-
tioned and the created form so justly balanced that it
cannot be attracted towards the destructive or "left-
hand" path.
RULE X. As the waters bathe the form created, they
are absorbed and used. The form increases in its
strength; let the magician thus continue until the
work suffices. Let the outer builders cease their
labors then, and let the inner workers enter on their
cycle.
One of the fundamental concepts which is grasped by
all magical workers, is that both will and desire are
force emanations. They differ in quality and vibration,
but are essentially currents of energy, one forming an
initial vortex or center of activity, being centrifugal, and
the other being centripetal, and the main factor in the
accretion of matter into a form around the central vor-
tex. This can be seen demonstrating in an interesting
way in the case of the egoic lotus, where we have the
will aspect forming the "jewel in the lotus," or the inner
4
The courses open to the Divine Ego after separation are two.––S. D.,
III,524.
a. It can start a fresh series of incarnations.
b. It can return to the 'bosom of the Father' and be gathered back
to the Monad.
Two courses are open to the lower discarded self.––S. D., III, 525, 527.
a. If with a physical body it becomes a soulless man.
In this case there is hope.
b. If without a physical body it becomes a spook, or one form of the
Dweller on the Threshold.
1040 A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
tion instigated which is a continuation of the rotary mo-
tion of the individual atoms, and the modification pro-
duced on them by their group activity. This causes pro-
gression and simultaneous rotation. The movement for-
ward is modified considerably by the internal atomic
activity, and this it is which causes that motion we call
spiral cyclic. It demonstrates in all forms as a tendency
to repeat, owing to the backward pull of the rotating
atoms, and yet is offset by the strong progressive im-
pulse of the form activity. Students can work this out
in connection with:
The planetary Logos, as He manifests through the
rounds, each one of which, in its earlier stages, re-
capitulates all that has previously occurred.
Man, in the ante-natal period, in which he runs through
the various stages of development.
Spiritual man, as he creates that which will destroy
the "Dweller on the Threshold."
This spiral-cyclic activity, which is distinctive of all
forms, can perhaps be comprehended more practically if
we study it as an expression of four laws, taking each
one briefly in turn:
1. The Law of Expansion.
This law of a gradual evolutionary expansion of the
consciousness indwelling every form is the cause of the
spheroidal form of every life in the entire solar system.
It is a fact in nature that all that is in existence dwells
within a sphere.6 The chemical atom is spheroidal: man
6
The Atom.––S.D., I, 113, 566. It is on the illusive nature of matter
and the infinite divisibility of the atom that the whole Science of Occultism
is built.
1. Everything is atomic––God, Monads, atoms.
a. The sphere of solar manifestation. . . . . . . . . . . . . God
The mundane egg. The logoic auric egg. . . . . . . . Macrocosm
b. The sphere of monadic manifestation. . . . . . . . . . Monads
The monadic auric egg. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Microcosm
c. The sphere of the ultimate physical atom. . . . . . . .Atoms
1056 A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
tion, due, to the gradually increasing responsiveness of
the planetary Logos to His heavenly Prototype, whereby
influences from the Great Bear draw, or occultly "at-
tract," the attention of the Logos, and bring Him more
into line with a greater impulsive Will. This shifting
causes disruption in His lower manifestation, which is a
condition on the cosmic Path of Initiation analogous to
that undergone by a disciple.
The planetary atom revolves upon its axis and comes
periodically under influences which produce definite ef-
fects. These influences are, among others, those of the
moon, and of the two planets which lie nearest to it on
either side––nearer and farther away from the Sun. The
moon's influence is exceedingly strong, and has a curious
resemblance (as far as the physical planet is concerned)
to the "Dweller on the Threshold," which has such a
familiar and potent effect upon the human atom. The
resemblance must not be strained, for it should be borne
in mind that the moon has no effect upon the Heavenly
Man Himself, as His stage of evolution negates such a
thing, but that the influence felt is by the planetary
Entity––the sumtotal of the elemental essences of the
planet. Scientific occult students will learn much anent
the planetary scheme when they consider the influence of
the moon's karmic pull upon the earth, coupled with
the effect of the two neighboring planets, occultly
understood.
Second, the planetary atom also revolves orbitally
around its solar center. This is its expression of rotary-
spiral-cyclic action, and its recognition of the divine cen-
tral magnet. This brings it under the constant impres-
sion of other schemes, each of which produces effects
upon the planet. It likewise brings it under the inflowing
streams of energy from what are termed the zodiacal
constellations which reach the planetary scheme via the
great center, the Sun. It will be apparent to any student
A Treatise on White Magic by Alice A. Bailey, 1934
Thirteenth printing, 1974 (3rd Paperback Edition)
184 A TREATISE ON WHITE MAGIC
b. The aligning of the man on the physical plane with
his ego, soul or higher self, on the mental plane and the
subordination of the physical plane life and nature to the
impress and control of the soul. This is covered suffi-
ciently in the first two or three chapters of Letters on
Occult Meditation and these should be studied by aspirants.
c. The downflow of force via the sutratma, magnetic
cord, or thread from the soul to the brain via the mind
body. The whole secret of spiritual vision, correct per-
ception and right contact lies in the proper appreciation
of the above statement, and therefore the Yoga Sutras
of Patanjali are ever the text-book of disciples, initiates
and adepts, for therein are found those rules and methods
which bring the mind under control, stabilize the astral
body and so develop and strengthen the thread soul that
it can and does become a veritable channel of communi-
cation between the man and his ego. The light of illumi-
nation streams down into the brain cavity and throws
into objectivity three fields of knowledge. This is often
forgotten and hence the undue distress and premature
interpretations of the partially illuminated disciple or
probationer.
The light first throws into relief and brings into the
foreground of consciousness those thought-forms and en-
tities which depict the lower life, and which (in their
aggregate) form the Dweller on the Threshold.
Thus the first thing of which the aspirant becomes
aware is that which he knows to be undesirable and the
revelation of his own unworthiness and limitations, and
the undesirable constituents of his own aura burst on
his vision. The darkness which is in him is intensified
by the light which glimmers faintly from the center of
his being and frequently he despairs of himself and
descends into the depths of depression. All mystics
bear witness to this and it is a period which must be
238 A TREATISE ON WHITE MAGIC
The work of the initiate and the adept grows out of these
achievements and they need not be dealt with here.
The battle is spread over quite a series of lives, but in
some one life it becomes critical; the final stand is made
and Arjuna triumphs in the fight, but only by letting
Krishna assume the reins of control, by learning mind
control and by the revelation of the form of God. By
distinguishing between the soul and the form, and by a
vision of the perfection of the glory which can radiate
from the forms "indwelt by God", he learns to choose
the way of light and to see his form and all forms as
custodians of the light. So he buckles down to the work
of making the astral body simply a reflector of that light
and by the quelling of desire, through the subjugation of
the "Agnisuryans" who constitute his astral body and
are the living substance of the astral plane, he learns
to function as an adept on that plane, to pierce through
its illusion and to see life true.
Speaking symbolically the substance of the astral plane
is animated by three types of divine force, which, when
brought together, produce the great Illusion. These are:
First, the force of selfish desire. This involutionary
energy plays a big part in bringing about evolution, for
selfishness is the nursery of infant souls. Hence the as-
pirant refuses to be held by it.
Second, the force of fear. This is the product of ig-
norance, and in its initial stages it is not the product
of wrong thinking. It is basically instinctual and is found
dominating in the non-mental animal kingdom as well
as in the human kingdom. But in the human its power
is increased potently through the powers of the mind,
and through memory of past pain and grievance and
through anticipation of those we foresee, the power of
fear is enormously aggravated by the thought-form we
ourselves have built of our own individual fears and
RULE EIGHT 239
phobias. This thought form grows in power as we pay at-
tention to it, for "energy follows thought", till we be-
come dominated by it. Second ray people are peculiarly
a prey to this. For the majority of them it constitutes the
"dweller on the threshold", just as ambition and love
of power, backed by frantic desire and unscrupulousness
form the "Dweller" for the first ray types. The crystal-
lized thought form of intellectual achievement for sel-
fish ends, and the use of knowledge for personality
objectives stand before the portal of the path in the
case of the third ray person, and unless broken up and
destroyed will dominate him and turn him into a black
magician.
You oft have been told that fear is an illusion. Yet
this statement does not help. It is a generalization that
one can admit, yet which remains profoundly difficult
to apply individually. The fears to which aspirants are
subject (note the mode of wording this) are seldom of
a selfish nature except insofar as suffering has caused
them to recoil from a further continuation of untoward
happenings. Their fears are wrapt in seeming love
around their loved ones. Yet should each disciple ask
himself a most practical question: How many of the
torturing hours have been expended on realities and on
tangible happenings and how many on illusory premoni-
tions and on doubts and questionings, based on that
which has never happened? I would like to point out
to my brothers that they need to do two things: To
meditate on truth in daily life, using the concept of truth
practiced and lived by as their seed thought in medita-
tion; to this end I would suggest that they memorize and
use at all times when swept by illusory fears and need-
less foreboding the following formula or prayer:
"Let reality govern my every thought and truth be
the master of my life."
Let each say this to himself as constantly as need re-
240 A TREATISE ON WHITE MAGIC
quires, forcing his mind to focus attention upon the sig-
nificance of these spoken words.
I would suggest also sound common sense and the
cultivation of an attitude of mind which refuses to permit
time for illusory fears to grow.
Fear is the main obstacle frequently to a very vital
step forward which could be taken in this life, but may
have to be delayed to another if due opportunity is not
taken and the will nature powerfully excited.
The first ray aspirant who fails to overcome his Dwel-
ler may become a "destroyer of souls", as it is called,
and be condemned (until he learns his lesson) to work
in the forces of matter, and with the forms which hold
all souls in prison. This is the occult significance of the
misunderstood words death and destruction. Of this
type, the Devil is the great prototype.
The second ray aspirant who builds his Dweller and
permits its steady and increasing control becomes a "de-
luder of souls". He is the true Anti-Christ, and through
false teaching and the working of so-called miracles,
through hypnotism and mass suggestion he draws a veil
over the world and forces men to walk in the great illu-
sion. It is interesting to note that the work of the Devil,
the imprisoner of souls, is beginning to lose its power,
for the race is on the verge of understanding that true
death is immersion in form, and that matter is but a part
of the divine whole. The thought form of this "Dweller
on the Threshold" which humanity has built for millions
of years is on the verge of destruction. But the work
of Anti-Christ is only rising now to its height, and the
delusion of riches, of possession, of false teaching will
increasingly hold sway but the term of the delusion will
be shorter than the term of destruction, for all these fac-
tors function under their own cycles and have their own
ebb and flow.
The third ray person who also fails to shatter his
RULE EIGHT 241
"Dweller" becomes what is called a "manipulator of
souls" and uses the mind to destroy the real and to put
a veil between the man and reality. It must be remem-
bered that none of these names and these activities refer
to the soul on its own plane but only to human souls in
incarnation on the physical plane. This must be stressed,
for on its own plane the souls of all men stand free from
illusion, and neither can be destroyed, deluded nor ma-
nipulated. It is only "the souls in prison" who are sub-
ject to the activities of the forces of evil and only for
a term. The first group works through governments,
through politics, and the interplay between nations and
is relatively small in number. The second ray group
who delude and deceive, work through religious agencies,
through mass psychology, and the misuse and misapplica-
tion of devotion and of the arts. They are largest in
number. The third group work primarily through com-
mercial relations in the business world and through the
use of money, the concretization of prana or uni-
versal energy, and the outer symbol of the universal flux
and flow. These thoughts are suggestive but not vital,
dealing as they do with the cosmic tendencies.
Thirdly, the force of sex attraction. This is a pull
from the physical plane and the swinging back of a type
of involutionary energy on to the path of return. Cos-
mically speaking, it manifests as the attractive force be-
tween spirit and matter; spiritually speaking, it is
demonstrated as the activity of the soul, as it seeks to
draw the lower self into full realization. Physically
speaking, it is the urge which tends to unite male and
female for the purpose of procreation. When man was
purely animal, no sin was involved. When to this urge
was added emotional desire, then sin crept in, and the
purpose for which the urge manifested was perverted into
the satisfaction of desire. Now that the race is more
mental, and the force of mind is making itself felt in
 RULE TEN 297
In considering the sentient body of a human being I
will probably help the most if I deal with it in terms of
its moods and ordinary expressions for it is only in deal-
ing with its effects and in seeking to master them that
man arrives at knowledge of himself and so becomes a
Master. The most ordinary manifestations of astral activity
are:
I. Fear.
II. Depression or its opposite pole, hilarity.
III. Desire for the satisfaction of the animal appetites.
IV. Desire for happiness.
V. Desire for liberation. Aspiration.
In these five are summed up practically most of the
sentient experiences of man and we will consider each one
from the following angles:
1. The cause.
2. The effect.
3. The method of direction.
You will note that I say `method of direction' not
method of control. Aspirants must learn that they are
working with, and in, forces, and that right and wrong
activity on the physical plane is due simply to a right or
wrong direction of the force currents and not to anything
inherently wrong or right in the energies themselves.
I. Fear. This is one of the most usual of the mani-
festations of astral energy, and is put first because it
constitutes, for the vast majority, the Dweller on the
Threshold and also in the last analysis is the basic astral
evil. Every human being knows fear and the range of
the fear vibrations extends from the instinctual fears of
the savage man based on his ignorance of the laws and
forces of nature, and on his terror of the dark and the
unknown, to the fears so prevalent today of loss of
friends and loved ones, of health, of money, of popularity
RULE TEN 309
in unrestrained merriment and which is the opposite pole
of unrestrained weeping. I refer not here to true merri-
ment nor the proper sense of humor, but to those hys-
terical outbreaks of hilarity which are so common among
the rank and file of humanity and lead to reactions of fatigue.
3. A devitalized condition of the physical body. This
is due to various causes such as:
a. A depleted etheric or vital body.
b. Physical disease, either inherent or brought over
from another life, accidental, or due to wrong emo-
tional reactions, or produced as the result of group
karma, such as an epidemic.
c. Atmospheric. This is sometimes overlooked, but
the condition of the atmosphere, the nature of the
climate, the density, humidity or dryness, the heat
or cold have a definite effect upon the psychologi-
cal outlook.
You will find, if you study, that all subsidiary and
temporary causes of depression and its opposite can be
grouped under one of these three heads, and when one
has ascertained the cause, the cures will become apparent.
I have dealt somewhat at length with the two first
manifestations of astral force––Fear––fear of death, of
the future, of suffering, of failure and the many lesser
fears to which humanity is subject––and Depression––be-
cause these two fears constitute for man the Dweller on
the Threshold in this age and cycle. Both of them in-
dicate sentient reaction to psychological factors and can-
not be dealt with by the use of another factor such as
courage. They must be met by the omniscience of the
soul working through the mind,––not by its omnipotence.
In this is to be found an occult hint. I shall not deal
with the other factors listed such as desire for happi-
ness, for the satisfaction of the animal appetites, and
 382 A TREATISE ON WHITE MAGIC
black and white magic, and one of the reasons of
the purifying waters of the flood being deemed necessary.
c. The powerful thought-forms built up in the early
Ibezhan mysteries and which (particularly in
America) are as yet undestroyed. This gigantic
"Dweller on the Threshold" of all the true Mys-
teries has to be slaughtered before the aspirant
can pass on.
10. The work of the Ibezhan adepts and the mysteries
of the Temple of Ibez are still persisting and are being
carried on by the masters and adepts in physical incarna-
tion throughout the world. They teach the meaning of
the psyche, the ego or the soul and of the human unit, so
that the man may indeed be what he is, a God walking on
earth, his lower nature (physical, astral and mental)
completely controlled by the soul or the love aspect, and
this not in theory but in deed and truth.
When this is the case, the physical body will have no
lure for the real man, the emotional nature and desire
body will no longer lead astray nor will the mind shut
out that which is true and spiritual, but the God will use
the three bodies as vehicles of service to the race. Then
will the human kingdom be transcended and man pass
into the spiritual kingdom there to have further lessons
just as infant humanity when passing out of the animal
kingdom was trained and taught its functions and work
by the Ibezhan teachers.
In Atlantean days, the goal that the Hierarchy of
Teachers set before Themselves was the awakening in
man of the love nature, as a step towards the awakening
of the heart center. To do this, the Teachers at that time
were Themselves focussed (deliberately and of intent)
in the heart center, and chose to work entirely through
that center, subordinating Their mental equipment and
Discipleship in the New Age-Vol. I by Alice A. Bailey, 1944
Eleventh Printing, 1989 (4th Paperback Edition)
92 Discipleship in the New Age
of revelation. The demands of the soul and the suggestions of
the Master might be regarded as in conflict with the demands
of time and space, focused in the personality or the lower man.
You will have, therefore, in this situation a tremendous pull
between the pairs of opposites; the field of tension or the focus
of the effort is to be found in the disciple "standing at the mid-
way point." Will he respond and react consciously to the higher
pull and pass on to new and higher areas of spiritual experi-
ence? Or will he fall back into the glamour of time and space
and into the thralldom of the personal life? Will he stand in
a static quiescent condition in which neither the higher trend
nor the lower pull will affect him? One or other of these three
conditions must distinguish him and must succeed upon an
earlier and vacillating experience wherein the disciple vibrates
between the higher and the lower decisions. It is at this
process, the Master presides. He is able to do nothing because
it is the disciple's own problem. He can only endeavor to
enhance the desire of the soul by the power of His directed
thought. The personality can also do nothing, for at this point
both the physical body and the astral vehicle are simply automa-
tons, waiting responsively for the decision of the disciple,
functioning in his mental body. Only the disciple can act upon
the mental level of consciousness at this point of endeavor.
Once he does so, the die is cast. He either moves forward
towards the door of light where the Master takes his hand and
the Angel of the Presence becomes potent and active in a way
which I may not describe to you, or he drops back temporarily
into the life condition of the lower man; glamour and maya
settle down anew upon him and the Dweller on the Threshold
inserts himself between the disciple and the light from the open
door and renews activity. The disciple either awakens suddenly
to a wider grasp of reality and a deeper understanding of the
Plan and his part in it, or the "veils of earth" close over his
head; the vision fades and he reverts into the life of an ordi-
nary human being, probably for the period of the incarnation
wherein the opportunity was offered to him. Should he, how-
ever, go forward through that door, then (according to the
initiation which becomes possible) will be the revelation and
its attendant consequences. The revelation will not be the
 Personal Instructions to Disciples 425
emerge––the glamour of depression, based on a sense of spir-
itual inferiority which is not warranted, being not based on
facts. As an instance of this––read the list of failings which you
give. My brother, even if there is some basis of truth in your
enumeration, still your replies remain untruthful for you omit
all recollection or reference to the other side of the picture.
You are centred in your mind in the involutionary reactions of
the personality vehicles. Yet, you are, as you well know, in
preparation for certain steps forward upon the Path. A clear
vision of yourself is needed and at each turn upon the Way
you have to face three realities:
1. The little or lower self.
2. The Dweller upon the Threshold, in cases such as yours.
3. The Angel of the Presence.
Be not so occupied with the personality self, seek more fre-
quently the company of the Angel, which hides and veils (and
yet reveals) the hidden glory of the spirit. Your faults are
there, as are the faults of all upon the Way. Many pass much
time and thus slow down their active spiritual expression by
an undue interest and a too intent focusing upon the liabili-
ties and limitations. Recognize this, my brother, and then pass
on. They are not all you have to show; they do not give the
entire picture.
Five years ago you evidenced much spiritual pride; you had
a strong sense of separativeness, and a highly developed critical
mind. Today these demonstrate far less than formerly, and you
are now quick to see any emerging wrong tendencies, and
equally quick to repudiate them.
Humble love is for you the goal this year together with the
expression of a loving, understanding heart, thus aiding all you
meet. Have no other aim. The practice of this will balance and
round out your undoubted head development.
I shall not change your work greatly. Continue to ponder
upon the thoughts I earlier gave you as seed ideas for medita-
tion. Take them now, however, as the theme of your daily recol-
lection and not as seed thoughts for meditation. Follow the
group meditation with care for it will give you what you need.
For you, during the coming year, the cultivation of a poised
618 Discipleship in the New Age
others is your great need just now. It will do much to bring
your devious and involved mental attitudes and aspirations into
right order. Make life very simple, brother of mine.
June 1942
BROTHER OF OLD:
You have been drawn back into a phase of my work which,
in the early days, you aided me to start. Opportunity opens up
before you; you can be and do much. The success of this will
be dependent upon your ability to walk humbly and to recog-
nise the fact that ancient thoughtforms still exist upon the
periphery of your consciousness, and that the Dweller on the
Threshold stands ready at all times to avail himself of the
weaknesses to which you have been prone.
I say not this in other spirit than that of warning you, and
I am happy to see you again within the sphere of action of the
work. I look to you to aid and help. If you will always act in
full cooperation with your fellow workers, and if you will culti-
vate frankness and open-heartedness and clear speech, the end
is sure.
Spiritual radiation holds the key to your successful service,
and the careful watching of your lower sixth and third ray
tendencies. You must be prepared for tests and difficulties until
you have proved yourself; these seldom come the expected
way. One of your major safeguards is ever, as I have already
told you, to adhere to and carry forward the next duty and to
concentrate upon that which has been undertaken. Avoid that
which lies outside the periphery of the work, regarding any-
thing else as a sidetrack for you.
My blessing rests upon you, and my confidence in your abil-
ity to stand steady and to avoid glamour is always present.
December 1942
MY BROTHER:
Life has been difficult for you since you have again sought
to work in connection with my plans. Things have not worked
out as you anticipated and you are full of inner distress, ques-
762 Discipleship in the New Age
the standpoint of the highest occult training and when the dis-
ciple is in the Ashram itself, the centres are viewed as simply
channels for energy. Until the time of the third initiation,
they assume temporary importance in the training process
because it is through them that the disciple learns the nature
of energy, its distinction from force and the methods of dis-
tribution––the latter being one of the last stages in the training
process.
The constitution of the ego, or Soul, is the factor of para-
mount importance to the Master in the task of training the dis-
ciple for hierarchical work. This necessarily involves the three
higher centres (head, heart and throat). It is with the so-called
egoic lotus that He is concerned and this is a point which the
disciple is very apt to forget. The soul is pre-occupied with its
own life; the details of the personality life (its inadequate ex-
pression or shadow in the three worlds) simply make no impact
whatsoever upon the soul consciousness. As the violence of the
personality life grows, the soul which has been increasingly
the recipient of the best the aspiring personality has to offer
and which has been slowly turning its attention towards the
mind of the personality, becomes also aware of an opposing
factor to true soul expression upon the outer periphery of life.
Then the battle of the higher pairs of opposites begins––the
battle between soul and personality, consciously waged on both
sides. That is the point to have in mind. This conflict cul-
minates, prior to each of the first three initiations, in the con-
fronting of the two opponents; the Dweller on the Threshold
(of initiation, my brother) and the Angel of the Presence stand
face to face. But with that battle, we are not here concerned.
We are occupied with the theme of the response to hierarchical
energy as embodied in the Master's aura and from thence trans-
mitted to the disciple. The channel or channels of direction
(there are three of them) might be expressed thus:
I. The Hierarchy.
1. The Master.
2. The Ashram.
3. The soul of the disciple.
II. Humanity.
1. The disciple.
Discipleship in the New Age-Vol. II by Alice A. Bailey, 1955
Seventh Printing, 1986 (3rd Paperback Edition)
TALKS TO DISCIPLES 13
I intend to point out, but not dictate to you, modes of
eradication.
The times are serious and the world disciples are hard
pressed. The Hierarchy and its affiliated groups are seeking
active help and cooperation in the work of salvage. All
disciples and aspirants are needed, and all can give much if
the desire, the loving heart and the consecrated mind are
united in service. I ask aid in the task of reconstruction. I
ask for your consecrated help. I ask you to discipline your-
selves anew, to hold back nothing, either objective or sub-
jective. I ask for your wholehearted cooperation in the work
of world salvage.
Group Instruction
December 1941
My Brothers:
I would like to start off this instruction with the simple
statement as to the task which all disciples of the Masters
throughout the world are engaged in undertaking and
which you also should consciously consider. It is the task of
confronting the Dweller on the Threshold in your own life
and also in the group life, and then––from that vantage
point of strength––face that Dweller on behalf of humanity
and thus aid humanity to vanquish this ancient evil. To do
this presupposes crisis in your life and in the life of human-
ity. The handling of crises is the hallmark of the disciple,
and every crisis met and rightly handled provides (once the
difficulty is occultly "under the feet") the place from which
an extended vision can be gained, fresh knowledge can flow
in and the transmuting light can shine from the Angel of
the Presence and thus produce results.
Each of you has passed through a cycle of real difficulty
and strain. This is true of all disciples. The past eighteen
months have been months of precipitation, producing a
chemicalization, an interior process of upheaval and prob-
ably outer behavior which may have caused concern to the
Observer within. This however is but the reaction of the
14 DISCIPLESHIP IN THE NEW AGE
personality to undue pressure and strain, to world conditions
and clearer vision. Vision reveals both the light and the
dark, a thing which is oft forgotten. Disciples are fortunate
if the major results work out in the physical body. The re-
actions of the physical body are the least important and do
the least harm to others. Where they work out in an emo-
tional or mental condition they are then apt to become a
problem of fellow disciples, adding to their strain and neces-
sitating an effort upon their part to carry the brother through
with the least damage to the group.
In this group work you need to remember that increas-
ingly there will be no individual life. This is as it should
be. Increasingly disciples should be aware of each other and
tune in with ease on each other; increasingly the bonds of
illumined loyalty should control; increasingly you will par-
ticipate in each other's attitudes and conditions and thus
learn the basic lesson of understanding. Understanding is the
secret behind all power to achieve identification with any
form of divine expression; understanding is one of the prime
factors in producing revelation, and this is one of the para-
doxes of occultism. In the world of human thought, under-
standing follows the prescribed routine, it follows the pre-
sented fact. In the life of the spirit, understanding is a
necessary predisposing cause of revelation. I would ask you
to ponder on this, bracing yourself for revelation, through
a deep understanding of the initiator in yourself. Each of
you has to initiate your own individual crises; there is no
one else who is responsible. Each of you together initiates
the activity for which the group is responsible and for which
you have been brought together; each of you initiates him-
self into the Presence, through the medium of the Angel,
and into the shadow of the Dweller on the Threshold.
Through this process, full consciousness is achieved.
The work of this group, and of other groups similarly
motivated, is to achieve these undertakings together: To-
gether to face the Dweller and triumph; together to arrive
at understanding; together to stand before the Presence be-
cause the Angel's light reveals "that which the eye has never
seen;" together to walk the Path of Revelation; together to
TALKS TO DISCIPLES 31
ing from a multitude of thinkers and minds. These work
both as individuals and as members of a group. There is also
emotional inspiration to which––in its most easily recognis-
able appearance––we give the name of aspiration. All these
are, esoterically considered, evocative of desire, to be trans-
muted into will if (and only if) "the energy of the will-to-
good is the emanating principle and the actuating result of
the inspired impulse; it must constitute the motivating im-
pulse at the center of the disciple's being." Thus spoke one
of the Masters not long ago to a disciple who sought to grasp
the synthetic effect of inspiration. It is the Will and its im-
mediate evocation which is the major need of this particular
group of my disciples. The hierarchical Plan is the objective
of that will; the purpose of Sanat Kumara is the revelation
which comes to those who demonstrate that will, and it is
the strength of the divine Power which makes that will pos-
sible. Strength is to Power what desire is to aspiration, or
what the personality is to the soul. It is the revelation of
quality.
I have started this communication with this note of Will
because the use of that will (under instruction) is the ob-
jective of your next year's work; as we proceed with the
various phases of our study which I have earlier outlined, my
use of this theme will emerge clearly in your consciousness.
It has seemed to me necessary to open this instruction
with a brief resume of the past teaching. The pressure of life
these days is very great; everybody is tired; you will there-
fore approach this fresh addition to the teaching with re-
newed zest if the past teaching is clearly apprehended and is
clearly illumined in your minds.
What is the task which confronts you, both as individuals
and as a group? It is a fivefold task:
1. To confront and deal adequately with your own per-
sonal Dweller on the Threshold.
2. To share––as a group––in humanity's effort to con-
front the group Dweller on the Threshold; this
"Dweller" is constructed of the evil desires of all man-
kind, of humanity's mistakes and weaknesses, thoughts,
 TALKS TO DISCIPLES 47
the "good." The will-to-good is the basic quality of divine
purpose, involving planned activity and a definite goal to be
achieved. It necessitates the ability to think in terms of the
whole, an appreciation of the next step which humanity must
take in the imminent Great Approach (for this must be a
reciprocal Approach), an understanding of the lessons of the
past and a vision, based––not on love or on soul-sight––but
on a conviction as to the immediate purpose of Sanat
Kumara, as He works it out through the Christ and the
planetary Hierarchy. This conviction is based, as far as the
Hierarchy is concerned, on pure reason; it is based, as far as
humanity is concerned, through its disciples, on intuitive
perception, implemented by love and expressed intelligently.
Upon this I would ask you to ponder, and as you ponder,
make the needed changes in your personal approach to the
problem.
The third point grows out of the above. You are all
pledged disciples, and as such your immediate personal prob-
lem (in which I may not and therefore cannot help you) is
to overcome and destroy the hold which the Dweller on the
Threshold may have upon you. We are back, therefore, to
our starting point, and a question now arises in your minds:
"How can I overcome this Dweller and yet at the same time
refuse to concentrate upon myself and my problems? This I
am told by you not to do, and yet the Dweller is the sum-
total of all personality holds and defects, all potencies––emo-
tional, mental and physical––which limit my expression as a
soul. What can I therefore do?"
My answer would be: You must first of all accept the
fact of the Dweller, and then relegate that Dweller to its
rightful place as part of the Great Illusion, the great phan-
tasmagoria of existence and as an integral part of the life of
the three worlds. You must then proceed upon your planned
life service (What definite plan or plans have you, my
brother?) and act as if the Dweller existed not, thus freeing
yourself from all personality influence in due time and leav-
ing your mind free for the task in hand. I could perhaps
word it another way. When your interest in hierarchical
work and the programme of the Ashram with which you are
48 DISCIPLESHIP IN THE NEW AGE
connected is adequately strong, it will then dominate all your
actions, and all your thoughts (waking or sleeping); you will
then find that the grip of the Dweller will be broken, that its
life has been destroyed by the force of attrition and its form
destroyed in the fires of sacrifice. Such, briefly, is the story;
I waste no time with elaborations, for there is much I seek
to give you in this instruction.
I desire to give you the help you need for the coming
year which faces you. Above all, however, I am endeavouring
to make clear to future generations certain basic principles
and certain aspects of hierarchical truth which must in the
New Age govern those who seek to tread the Path of Disciple-
ship and who are willing to be prepared for initiation.
Changes in curriculum and in techniques are being made by
the Hierarchy; the adaptation of old methods to modern
needs and to more highly developed men is under way. I
write not for you in reality. You have already had more than
you have used. I write for the coming disciples and initiates
of the next two generations.
It is essential that disciples in all Ashrams consider these
days what humanity's problems are, what they mean and
what their solution entails; they must know what the Masters
of the Wisdom want done and then they must talk and write,
act and live so that others too may understand.
Humanity has never really lived up to the teaching given
to it. Spiritual impression, whether conveyed by the Christ,
by Krishna or by Buddha (and passed on to the masses by
Their disciples) has not yet been expressed as it was hoped.
Men do not live up to what they already know; they fail to
make practical their information; they short-circuit the light;
they do not discipline themselves; greedy desire and unlaw-
ful ambition control and not the inner knowledge. To put it
scientifically and from the esoteric angle: Spiritual impres-
sion has been interrupted and there has been interference
with the divine circulatory flow. It is the task of the disciples
of the world to restore this flow and to stop this interference.
This is the major problem facing the Ashrams at this time.
This year, I will make clear to you what work is asked of
the group in relation to the planned group work, the group
 Glamour: A World Problem by Alice A. Bailey, 1950
Eighth Printing, 1988 (4th Paperback Edition)
20 Glamour: A World Problem
As we proceed we shall divide our subject up into greater
detail, but in this instruction I only seek to get certain broad
outlines into your minds so that the theme may fall into
right places in your thoughts.
There are four phrases which have for long been ban-
died about among so-called occultists and esotericists. They
are : glamour, illusion, maya and the expression, the dweller
on the threshold. They all stand for the same general con-
cept or some differentiation of that concept. Speaking gen-
erally, the interpretations have been as follows, and they
are only partial interpretations, and are almost in the nature
of distortions of the real truth, owing to the limitations of
the human consciousness.
Glamour has oft been regarded as a curious attempt of
what are called the "black forces" to deceive and hoodwink
well-meaning aspirants. Many fine people are almost flat-
tered when they are "up against" some aspect of glamour,
feeling that their demonstration of discipline has been so
good that the black forces are interested sufficiently to
attempt to hinder their fine work by submerging them in
clouds of glamour. Nothing could be further from the
truth. That idea is itself part of the glamour of the present
time, and has its roots in human pride and satisfaction.
Maya is oft regarded as being of the same nature as
the concept promulgated by the Christian Scientist that
there is no such thing as matter. We are asked to regard
the entire world phenomena as maya and to believe that its
existence is simply an error of mortal mind, and a form of
auto-suggestion or self-hypnotism. Through this induced
belief we force ourselves into a state of mind which recog-
nizes that the tangible and the objective are only figments
of man's imaginative mind. This, in its turn, is likewise
a travesty of reality.
Certain Preliminary Clarifications 21
Illusion is regarded rather the same way, only (as we
define it) we lay the emphasis upon the finiteness of man's
mind. The world of phenomena is not denied but we regard
the mind as misinterpreting it and as refusing to see it as
it is in reality. We consider this misinterpretation as con-
stituting the Great Illusion.
The Dweller on the Threshold is usually regarded as
presenting the final test of man's courage, and as being in
the nature of a gigantic thoughtform or factor which has
to be dissipated, prior to taking initiation. Just what this
thoughtform is, few people know, but their definition in-
cludes the idea of a huge elemental form which bars the
way to the sacred portal, or the idea of a fabricated form,
constructed sometimes by the disciple's Master to test his
sincerity. Some regard it as the sumtotal of a man a faults,
his evil nature, which hinders his being recognized as fit
to tread the Path of Holiness. None of these definitions,
however, give a true idea of the reality.
I would point out here that (generally speaking) these
four expressions are four aspects of a universal condition
that is the result of the activity––in time and space––of the
human mind. The activity of MINDS! Ponder on this
phrase for it gives you a clue to the truth.
The Problem of Illusion lies in the fact that it is a soul
activity, and the result of the mind aspect of all the souls
in manifestation. It is the soul which is submerged in the
illusion and the soul that fails to see with clarity until such
time as it has learnt to pour the light of the soul through
into the mind and the brain.
The Problem of Glamour is found when the mental
illusion is intensified by desire. What the Theosophist calls
"kama-manas" produces glamour. It is illusion on the
astral plane.
22 Glamour: A World Problem
The Problem of Maya is really the same as the above,
plus the intense activity produced when both glamour and
illusion are realized on etheric levels. It is that vital un-
thinking emotional MESS (yes, brother of old, that is the
word I seek to use) in which the majority of human beings
seem always to live.
The Dweller on the Threshold is illusion-glamour-maya,
as realized by the physical brain and recognized as that
which must be overcome. It is the bewildering thoughtform
with which the disciple is confronted, when he seeks to
pierce through the accumulated glamour of the ages and
find his true home in the place of light.
The above are necessarily only generalizations, and the
result also of the activity of the analytical mind, but they
serve to embody a part of the problem in words and to
convey to your minds a definite thoughtform of what we
shall later discuss in detail.
As to the causes of this world condition, what can I
say, brother of mine, which will convey meaning to your
minds? The cause lies far back in the consciousness of
the "imperfect Gods." Does that sentence really mean
aught to you? But little, I fear. We must descend into
the realm of greater practicality and only deal with the
matter as far as it concerns humanity. Planetary illusion
will later be briefly dealt with, but the immediate problem
before man and the significant contribution of the disciple
is the dissipation of much of the glamour in which mankind
is immersed and which, during the coming Aquarian Age,
will largely disappear in connection with the astral life of
the race. The point I would here make is to call attention
to the fact that it is in meditation and in the technique of
mind control that the thinkers of the world will begin to
rid the world of illusion. Hence the increasing interest in
meditation as the weight of the world glamour is increas-
Certain Preliminary Clarifications 23
ingly realized, and hence the vital necessity for right under-
standing of the way of mind control.
Another point which should be noted is that in the
crystallization of this material age comes the great oppor-
tunity to strike a deadly blow on the planetary Dweller on
the Threshold. The reaction at this time, through the stress
of circumstances, is bringing about a more spiritual under-
standing and a reorganization of human values, and this is
part of the process whereby a vital part of the world
glamour may be dissipated––if only all men of goodwill
within the world aura adhere to their appointed task.
When the Buddha was on Earth and achieved illumina-
tion, He "let in" a flood of light upon the world problem
through His enunciation of the Four Noble Truths. His
body of disciples and His nine hundred arhats formulated
those four great truths into a structure of dogma and doc-
trine that––by the power of collective thought––has greatly
helped in the attack upon the world illusion. Today the
Christ is carrying forward the same great task and in the
spiritual significance of His imminent Coming (and in the
language of symbolism) He and His nine thousand arhats
will strike a second blow at the world glamour. It is for
this that we prepare. Only the intuition can dispel illusion
and hence the need of training intuitives. Hence the service
you can render to this general cause by offering yourselves
for this training. If you can overcome glamour in your
own lives and if you can, therefore, comprehend the nature
of illusion you will help in
a. The destruction of the dweller on the threshold,
b. The devitalizing of the general maya,
c. The dissipation of glamour,
d. The dispelling of illusion.
26
SECTION ONE
THE NATURE OF GLAMOUR
In the preceding pages we dealt with certain definitions
of the words (frequently used interchangeably) dealing
with illusion and glamour. We found that:
1. Illusion is primarily of a mental quality and was
characteristic of the attitude of mind of those people
who are more intellectual than emotional. They have
outgrown glamour as usually understood. It is the mis-
understanding of ideas and thoughtforms of which they
are guilty, and of misinterpretations.
2. Glamour is astral in character, and is far more potent
at this time than illusion, owing to the enormous ma-
jority of people who function astrally always.
3. Maya is vital in character and is a quality of force.
It is essentially the energy of the human being as it
swings into activity through the subjective influence of
the mental illusion or astral glamour or of both in
combination.
4. The Dweller on the Threshold, always present, swings
however into activity only on the Path of Discipleship,
when the aspirant becomes occultly aware of himself,
of the conditions induced within him as a result of his
interior illusion, his astral glamour and the maya sur-
rounding his entire life. Being now an integrated per-
sonality (and no one is a disciple, my brother, unless
he is mental as well as emotional, which is a point the
The Nature of Glamour 27
devotee oft forgets) these three conditions (with the
preponderance of the effect in one or other of the
bodies) are seen as a whole, and to this whole the term
the "Dweller on the Threshold" is applied. It is in
reality a vitalized thoughtform––embodying mental
force, astral force and vital energy.
The problem, therefore, before all of you in this group
is to learn first of all:
1. To distinguish between these three inner illusory
aspects.
2. To discover what conditions in the environment or
in the individual constitution induce these situations of
difficulty.
3. To find out what methods are effective in inducing
a cessation of the bewildering deceiving conditions.
It must be remembered also that these distorting condi-
tions, found in all of you, are the medium whereby you are
tuned in on the world glamour and illusion. The emphasis
has been laid in esoteric teaching on the training and libera-
tion of the individual aspirant. This is, of course, necessary,
for the mass is made up of the individuals, and in the steady
release from the control of these inner delusions will come
the eventual clarification of humanity. Therefore each of
you in this group must of necessity work separately and
apart with himself, and learn to induce those conditions of
clarity and truth which will overcome the ancient rhythms
and deep-seated habits and thus steadily purify the aura.
But this has now to be done as a group, and this group
constitutes one of the first of the exoteric groups with
which it is intended to work in the new age. Through the
activity of such groups, the world glamour will be dissipated,
28 Glamour: A World Problem
but first of all the aspirant must learn to deal with individual
and group glamour. It is necessary to remember the fol-
lowing three things. I am going to be brief and technical
in teaching this group, for my time is short and you have
an adequate technical knowledge with which to understand
that whereof I speak.
First, the united auras of the group members ever deter-
mine the group condition, the group activity, usefulness,
problem and glamour. Hence emerges individual group
responsibility and individual usefulness. Each of you either
hinders or aids the group, according to his auric condition,
which is either in a state of glamour or illusion or is kept
relatively free from these conditions.
Second, that the first job that each of you has to do
is to determine his own peculiar problem. In giving you
your individual instructions, I will take up with you in this
instruction where the particular tendency in this direction
of each of you lies, and whether it is glamour, illusion or
maya to which you habitually succumb. I will deal with
directness, for I have tested your sincerity and believe in
your willingness to be told the truth. Once you have each
determined the specific nature of your peculiar problem,
you can then work with deliberation towards its solution––
with deliberation, brother of old, and with no speed, but
with due care and caution and with right understanding.
Thirdly, you must remember that as I look at the indi-
vidual in any of these groups, I can at the same time gauge
the quality of the group itself as a whole. The amount of
inner light that can shine through and make its presence
felt in your auras can be seen by me and indicate to me
the strength and the efficiency and also the potency of your
individual group influence, for the positive auras subordi-
nate the negative auras. What is required is a combination
of positive auras, deliberately subordinated to group work.
The Nature of Glamour 29
As you deal with illusion and as you free your minds from
its effects, and as you dissipate the astral glamour in which
you are all more or less immersed, you will enter into a
greater freedom of living and usefulness. As the maya
of distorted energy currents ceases to swing you into lines
of undesirable activity, the light that is in you will shine
forth with greater clarity. Incidentally the Dweller on the
Threshold will slowly and surely disintegrate and leave your
way, to the door of Initiation, free and unimpeded.
Strongly mental types are subject to illusion. This illu-
sion is reality a condition wherein the aspirant is being
definitely controlled by:
1. A thoughtform of such potency that it does two
things:
a. Controls the life activity or output.
b. Tunes the aspirant in on the mass thoughtforms,
which are of a similar nature, and which are built by
others under the dominance of a similar illusion.
This, in its worst aspect, produces mental insanity or
idée fixe, but in its least dangerous and normal result pro-
duces the fanatic. The fanatic is usually––even if he realizes
it not––a bewildered man, who has a potent idea of some
kind or another, but who finds it quite impossible to inte-
grate it into the world picture; to make those needed, and
often divinely directed, compromises which profoundly help
humanity; to find the time or place for the realities which
are within his natural grasp.
2. When a man is highly developed, the mental illusion
is built around a definite intuition and this intuition is con-
cretized by the mind until its appearance is so real that the
man believes he sees so clearly that which should be done
or given to the world that he spends his time endeavoring
34 Glamour: A World Problem
2. In speaking of the limitations of the planetary Logos
of our planet.
In the above remarks I have given you much food for
thought––not only as regards your own personal problems
(for all of you are subject to these conditions), but I have
also indicated to you what is the nature of glamour. The
word is used in all esoteric books and teaching to cover the
conditions which are differentiated under the words maya,
illusion and glamour itself. Later I will give you some
teaching upon the causes of glamour and the methods of
its dissipation. But I have given you here enough for the
present, for it is my desire that you ponder upon these
ideas during the next few months and learn somewhat of
the significance of these words which you so lightly use.
Watch yourselves and your daily life with discrimination,
so that you learn to distinguish between glamour, illusion
and maya. See whether you can discover the form which
your individual Dweller upon the Threshold is likely to
assume as you come into conflict with it; and if you do
the same for your group brothers and the immediate world
need, you will lose no time in the work of your astral
clarification and mental release.
I would ask you to study these instructions with peculiar
care, for I am taking the time and trouble these busy days
to meet your need and to bring as much light as I can, with-
out infringing your free will, to meet your need and clear
your course to service.
I would suggest also that you find out all that you can
anent the much misunderstood subject of the aura: search
out what is said in my books and in the writings extant in
any good occult library. I seek no copying out of para-
graphs but a formulation of your knowledge so that you
The Nature of Glamour 35
can answer clearly questions which might be asked. The
following three questions are basic:
1. What is the aura and how does it come into exis-
tence?
2. How can the aura be made the medium of light,
and the light which should shine through it be intensi-
fied?
3. Have you noticed what is the effect which your own
individual aura is making upon your environment and
how can you improve that effect?
This will enable you to make practical application of that
which I seek to teach you. Forget not that as you look out
upon the world and your immediate environment, that you
look out through your aura and have, therefore, to deal
with glamour and illusion.
There are three further questions which you might put
to yourself, facing the issue in the light of your soul:
1. Do I suffer primarily from glamour or from illusion?
2. Do I know which quality or characteristic in my
nature facilitates my tuning in on the world glamour
or the world illusion?
3. Have I reached the point where I can recognize my
peculiar Dweller on the Threshold, and can I state what
form it takes?
That you may indeed as individuals and also as a group
learn the meaning of true self-knowledge and so learn to
stand in spiritual being, increasingly free from glamour and
illusion, is the prayer of your friend and brother who has
fought his way through to a greater measure of light . . .
 The Nature of Glamour 39
will serve to guide your group and analogous groups in
the way of right activity. Secondly, I wish to recapitulate
somewhat those things which I have already stated so as to
enrich your understanding of the various phases of the
world glamour. This world glamour, the analytical mind
has to differentiate into distinctive phases, calling them
Illusion, Glamour, Maya and that synthetic thoughtform,
found on the Path of Discipleship, which is called by some
schools of esotericism the Dweller on the Threshold.
As you will see from this, my brothers, we have set
ourselves a large theme, which must be very carefully
handled. My task is a difficult one, because I write for
those who are still held by the varying aspects of glamour,
and usually by the secondary glamour and maya. Illusion
does not yet fully play its part and the Dweller is seldom
adequately realized. I would here remind you of a stupen-
dous occult fact and will ask you to endeavor to understand
that whereof I speak. The Dweller on the Threshold does
not emerge out of the fog of illusion and of glamour until
the disciple is nearing the Gates of Life. Only when he can
catch dim glimpses of the Portal of Initiation and an
occasional flash of light from the Angel of the Presence
Who stands waiting beside that door, can he come to grips
with the principle of duality, which is embodied for him in
the Dweller and the Angel. Do you comprehend that
whereof I speak? As yet, my words embody for you sym-
bolically a future condition and event. The day will surely
come, however, when you will stand in full awareness be-
tween these symbols of the pairs of opposites, with the
Angel on the right and the Dweller on the left. May
strength then be given to you to drive straight forward
between these two opponents, who have for long ages
waged warfare in the field of your life, and so may you
40 Glamour: A World Problem
enter into that Presence where the two are seen as one,
and naught is known but life and deity.
In summarizing some of the information I have given
to you concerning the four aspects of glamour, I would
offer the following tabulation for your careful considera-
tion.
Note:
1. A dawning sense of maya arose in Lemurian days,
but there was no real glamour and illusion.
2. Glamour arose in early Atlantean times.
3. Illusion arose among advanced human beings in later
Atlantean days and will be a controlling factor in our
Aryan race.
4. The Dweller on the Threshold arrives at full potency
at the end of this race, the Aryan, and in the lives of all
initiates prior to taking the third initiation.
5. The subhuman kingdoms in nature are free from
glamour and illusion, but are immersed in the world maya.
6. The Buddha and His 900 arhats struck the first blow
at the world glamour when He promulgated His Four
Noble Truths. The Christ struck the second blow with His
teaching of the nature of individual responsibility and of
brotherhood. The next blow will be struck by the New
Group of World Servers, acting under the direction of
Christ and His disciples, symbolically described as "Christ
and His 9000 initiates."
7. The Four Keynotes to the solution of the problem
of glamour are:
Intuition..Illumination..Inspiration...The Angel of the Presence.
54 Glamour: A World Problem
c. Made his soul alignment consciously and easily, and
firmly established his technique of contact.
d. Taken the first initiation.
The word illusion is frequently lightly used to signify
lack of knowledge, unsettled opinions, glamour, misunder-
standings, psychic bewilderment, the dominance of the lower
psychic powers, and many other forms of the world illusion.
But the time has come when the word must be used with a
developed discriminating sense, and when the disciple must
know clearly and comprehend the nature of that phenome-
nal miasma in which humanity moves. For the purpose of
clarity and in order to distinguish more definitely and effec-
tively between the forms of illusion in which the soul moves,
and from which it must liberate itself, it will be necessary for
us to separate the Great Illusion (in its various aspects)
into its component parts in time and space, and this I at-
tempted partially to do when I defined for you the words
Maya, Glamour, Illusion, and the Dweller on the Thresh-
old. I want you to keep very clearly in your mind these dis-
tinctions, and to study with care the tabulation earlier given
you.
Illusion, for our purposes, can be understood to signify
the reaction of the undisciplined mind to the newly con-
tacted world of ideas. This contact opens up from the mo-
ment a man has aligned himself and brought the lower na-
ture into touch with the higher. Ideas come to us from the
plane of the intuition. The soul illumines the plane of the
mind and the plane of the intuition so that they stand re-
vealed to each other and their mutual relationship becomes
then apparent. The mind of the man (which is slowly be-
coming the center of his consciousness and the major reality
in his existence) becomes aware of this new and undiscov-
ered world of ideas and he seizes upon some idea or group
80 Glamour: A World Problem
and body; of life, consciousness and form, the three aspects
of divinity––all of them equally divine.
As the aspirant learns to free himself from the glamours
upon which we have touched, he discovers another world of
fog and mist through which the Path seems to run and
through which he must penetrate and thus free himself from
the glamours of the Path. What are these glamours, my
brothers? Study the three temptations of Jesus, if you
would know clearly what they are. Study the effect that the
affirmation schools which emphasize divinity (materially
employed) have upon the thought of the world; study the
failures of disciples through pride, the world saviour com-
plex, the service complex, and all the various distortions of
reality which a man encounters upon the Path, which hinder
his progress and which spoils the service to others which he
should be rendering. Emphasize in your own minds the
spontaneity of the life of the soul and spoil it not with the
glamour of high aspiration selfishly interpreted, self-cen-
terness, self-immolation, self-aggressiveness, self-assertive-
ness in spiritual work––such are some of the glamours of
the Path.
Next, we will consider glamour on the etheric plane and
the theme of the Dweller upon the Threshold, and thus com-
plete the brief outline of our problem which the first part of
this teaching was intended to convey.
Before taking up this subject in some detail, I would
like to add something to our previous consideration of the
problem of glamour. In your last instruction, I elaborated
somewhat upon the subject of the various types of glamour
and left with you the concept of their great importance in
your individual lives. The battlefield (for the man who is
nearing accepted discipleship or who is upon the path of
discipleship, in the academic sense) is primarily that of
90 Glamour: A World Problem
ity upon the Path of Return." This return is the objective of
the human family and the culminating goal of the four king-
doms in nature. We could enlarge the concept by expressing
the truth in the following manner:
Process Correspondence Obstacle
1. Physical coordination.......Mineral kingdom........Maya.
2. Astral orientation............. Vegetable kingdom.... Glamour.
3. Mental direction............... Animal kingdom........ Illusion.
4. Personality alignment...... Human kingdom.........The Dweller on
the Threshold.
These processes have, therefore, their equivalents in all the
kingdoms and lead up to:
1. The unfoldment of the divine consciousness.
This starts in the mineral kingdom.
2. The expression of the soul.
This is typified in the vegetable kingdom with its
uses and beauty.
3. The manifestation of the Christ.
This is the recognized goal of the animal king-
dom which works towards individualization.
4. The revelation of the glory of God.
This is the objective before humanity.
4. Glamour upon the Higher Mental Planes...................
The Dweller on the Threshold.
We will now touch very briefly upon the problem of the
Dweller on the Threshold. This Dweller is oft regarded as
a disaster, as a horror to be avoided, and as a final and cul-
minating evil. I would remind you nevertheless that the
Dweller is the "one who stands before the Gate of God,"
who dwells in the shadow of the portal of initiation, and
who faces the Angel of the Presence open-eyed, as the an-
cient scripture calls it. The Dweller can be defined as the
sumtotal of the forces of the lower nature as expressed in
The Nature of Glamour 91
the personality, prior to illumination, to inspiration and to
initiation. The personality, at this stage, is exceedingly
potent, and the Dweller embodies all the psychic and mental
forces which down the ages have been unfolded in a man
and nurtured with care; it can be looked upon as the potency
of the threefold material form, prior to its consecration and
dedication to the life of the soul and to the service of the
Hierarchy, of God and humanity.
The Dweller on the Threshold is all that a man is, apart
from the higher spiritual self; it is the third aspect of divin-
ity as expressed in the human mechanism, and this third
aspect must eventually be subordinated to the second aspect,
the soul.
The two great contrasting Forces, the ANGEL and the
DWELLER, are brought together––face to face––and the
final conflict takes place. Again you will note that it is a
meeting and a battle between another and higher pair of
opposites. The aspirant has, therefore, three pairs of oppo-
sites with which to deal as he progresses towards light and
liberation.
The Pairs of Opposites
1. On the Physical Plane...The dense and the etheric.
Fought out upon the Path of Purification.
2. On the Astral Plane.....The well-known dualities.
Fought upon the Path of Discipleship.
3. On the Mental Plane.....The Angel and the Dweller.
Fought upon the Path of Initiation.
I have, I should judge, given you enough to ponder
upon; I would close it, however, by pointing out to you the
very practical nature of that which I have communicated and
would urge you to find out in your own practical experience
102 Glamour: A World Problem
this break in the continuity of the spiritual conscious-
ness. I would here remind you that this sense of peace
or perception of cleavage is in itself an illusion and of
the nature of glamour, and is based upon the illusory
sense of identification with that which is not the self,
or soul. The entire problem can be solved if the shift
of the consciousness is away from identification with
the lower forms of experience into that of identification
with the real and true man.
4. Stage by stage, the man has progressed from
one state of illusion or glamour to another, from one
point of discriminative opportunity to another until he
has developed in himself three major capacities:
1. The capacity to handle force.
2. The capacity to tread the middle way between
the pairs of opposites.
3. The capacity to use the intuition.
These capacities he developed by resolving the pairs
of opposites on the physical, astral and lower mental
planes. Now he faces his climaxing resolution, equipped
with these powers. He becomes aware of those two
great and apparently opposing entities (with both of
whom he finds himself consciously identified)––the
Angel of the Presence and the Dweller on the Thresh-
old. Behind the Angel he dimly senses, not another
duality, but a great Identity, a living Unity, which––
for lack of a better word––we call the PRESENCE.
He then discovers that the way out in this case
is not the method of handling force or of leaving behind
both pairs of opposites, or of right recognition through
the intuition, but that this Dweller and this Angel must
be brought together; the lower entity must be "blotted
out" in the "light," or "forced to disappear within the
The Causes of Glamour 103
radiance." This is the task of the higher of the two
entities, with which the disciple or the initiate, con-
sciously and deliberately, identifies himself. With this
process we will later deal. This is the problem which
faces the initiate before he takes the final three initia-
tions.
You must bear in mind that none of these three stages
are, in reality, divided off from each other by clear lines
of demarcation, nor do they follow each other in a clear
sequence. They proceed with much overlapping and often
with a partial simultaneity. It is only when the disciple
faces certain initiations that he awakens to the fact of these
distinctions. Therefore, it might be stated that:
1. In the first initiation the disciple demonstrates
that he has resolved the dualities of the physical plane
and can rightly impose etheric energy (the higher of
the two) upon physical energy.
2. In the second initiation, the initiate demonstrates
that he can choose between the pairs of opposites and
proceed with decision upon the "middle way."
3. In the third initiation, the initiate can employ the
intuition for the right perception of truth, and in that
initiation he catches the first real glimpse of the Dweller
on the Threshold and the Angel of the Presence.
4. In the fourth initiation, the initiate demonstrates
his ability to produce complete at-one-ment between the
higher and lower aspect of the soul in manifestation
and sees the Dweller on the Threshold merge into the
Angel of the Presence.
5. In the fifth initiation––and here words fail to
express the truth––he sees the Dweller on the Thresh-
 The Causes of Glamour 117
is colored by past activity, as is the substance composing
all the vehicles. This adds to maya and glamour, the state
of illusion.
4. The personality ray then emerges and intensifies all
these three aspects of force expression, producing eventually
their synthetic work. Then we have the emerging of what
has been called "the threefold glamorous condition," into
one major glamour.
5. The soul ray or energy is all this time steadily in-
creasing its rhythmic potency, and seeking to impose its
purpose and will upon the personality. It is the united rela-
tion and the interplay between these two which––when a
point of balance has been achieved––sweeps the man on to
the Probationary Path, on to the Path of Discipleship, and
right up to the gate of initiation. There, standing before
the Gate, he recognizes the final duality which awaits resolu-
tion. The Dweller on the Threshold and the Angel of the
PRESENCE.
The nature of these glamours differs with different
people, for the ray quality determines the type of glamour
or illusion to which a man will easily succumb, and that
kind of glamour which he will the most easily create. Dis-
ciples have to learn to differentiate between:
1. The glamours or glamour already existent in his
environment, to which he will easily be attracted, or
which he will easily attract, for they constitute the
line of least resistance.
2. The glamour that he creates as he tackles life
through the medium of a particular equipment,
which is colored by the experiences of past incar-
nations, and by the ray quality under which he has
come into being.
126 Glamour: A World Problem
set out to dominate the undesirable condition that he arrives
later at a recognition of an essential duality. This is, for the
time being, in no case an illusion. He discovers the relation-
ship between himself as a personality, the true Dweller on
the Threshold, and the Angel of the PRESENCE––guarding
the door of initiation. This marks a critical moment in
the life of the disciple for it indicates the moment wherein
he can begin to tread the Path of Initiation, if he so desires
and possesses the required fortitude.
In the last analysis, the partial subjugation of glamour
and escape from the complete thralldom of illusion are
indications to the watching Hierarchy that a man is ready
for the processes of initiation. Until he is no longer com-
pletely deceived and until he is somewhat free mentally, it
is not possible for him to face the waiting Angel and pass
through the door. One thing I would here point out to you:
after passing through the door of initiation, the disciple
returns each time again to take up anew his tasks in the
three worlds of activity; he there reenacts the former proc-
esses––briefly and with understanding––after which he
proceeds to master the essentials of the next initiatory les-
son. I am here putting a great deal of information in a very
condensed form, but that is all that is possible at this time.
For a long time, the sense of dualism pervades the dis-
ciple's being and makes his life appear to be a ceaseless con-
flict between the pairs of opposites. The battle of the
contraries is taking place consciously in the disciple's life.
He alternates between the experiences of the past and a
recollection of the experience of initiation through which
he has passed, with the emphasis, first of all, in the earlier
experiences; later, in the final great experience which is so
deeply coloring his inner life. He has prolonged moments
wherein he is the baffled disciple, struggling with glamour,
and brief moments wherein he is the triumphant initiate. He
 The Causes of Glamour 127
discovers in himself the sources of glamour and illusion and
the lure of maya until the moment arrives when again he
stands before the portal and faces the major dualities in his
own particular little cosmos––the Dweller and the Angel.
At first he fears the Angel and dreads the light which
streams from that Angel's countenance, because it throws
into vivid reality the nature of the Dweller who is himself.
He senses, as never before, the formidable task ahead of
him and the true significance of the undertaking to which he
has pledged himself. Little by little, two things emerge with
startling clarity in his mind:
1. The significance of his own nature, with its essential
dualism.
2. The recognition of the relationship between the
pairs of opposites with which he, as a disciple, has
to work.
Once he grasps the relation of the lower major duality (that
of the personality and the soul) he is then prepared to pass
on to the higher reality, that of the integrated Self (per-
sonality and soul) and its relation to the PRESENCE. In
this statement, you have expressed in a few concise words
the result of the first three initiations and the two final.
Ponder on this.
It will be of real value, I believe, if I relate for your
benefit the various contrasting characteristics of the intelli-
gent man and the disciple, using the word "disciple" to cover
all stages of development from that of accepted disciple to
that of the Master. There is naught but the Hierarchy,
which is a term denoting a steady progress from a lower
state of being and of consciousness to a higher. This is in
every case the state of consciousness of some Being, limited
and confined and controlled by substance. You will note that
128 Glamour: A World Problem
I say "substance" and not "form" for it is in reality sub-
stance which controls spirit for a long, a very long, cycle of
expression; it is not matter that controls, for the reason that
gross matter is always controlled by the forces which are
esoterically regarded as etheric in nature and, therefore, as
substance, not form. Remember this at all times for it holds
the clue to the true understanding of the lower nature.
We will study, therefore, the basic essential contrasts
which the disciple must intuitively grasp and with which he
must familiarize himself. We will divide what we have to
say into four parts, dealing briefly, but I trust helpfully,
with each:
a. The contrast between Illusion and its opposite....... Intuition.
b. The contrast between Glamour and its opposite..... Illumination.
c. The contrast between Maya and its opposite.......... Inspiration.
d. The contrast between the Dweller on the Threshold
and its opposite................................................ The Angel of the
PRESENCE.
This, you will realize, is a large subject and deals with the
major problem of the disciple. I would refer you at this
point to what I have already said anent these four aspects
of glamour, and would ask you to refer with care to the
various charts and tabulations which have been given to you
from time to time.
a. The Contrast between Illusion and Intuition.
I have chosen this as the first contrast with which to deal
as it should (even though it probably may not) constitute
the major glamour of the members of this group. Unfor-
tunately the emotional glamour dominates still and, for the
majority of you, the second contrast, that between glamour
and illumination, may prove the most useful and the most
constructive.
Illusion is the power of some mental thoughtform, of
some ideal, and some concept––sensed, grasped and inter-
152 Glamour: A World Problem
definitely imperils progress and retards the steps of the
disciple upon the Way. It can produce dangerous group
tension if present in any of you, and this induced group
tension can interfere with the free play of the power and
light which you are supposed to use, even when the other
group members remain unconscious of the emanating source.
Irritation definitely generates a poison which locates itself
in the region of the stomach and of the solar plexus. Irrita-
tion is a disease, if I might use that word, of the solar
plexus center and it is definitely contagious to an almost
alarming extent. So, my brothers, watch yourselves with
care and remember that just in so far as you can live in
the head and in the heart, you will end the disease of
imperil and aid in the transference of the forces of the
solar plexus into the heart center.
d. The Contrast between the Dweller and its opposite, the
Angel of the Presence.
The entire subject of the Dweller and its relation to
the Angel (a symbolic way of dealing with a great relation-
ship and possibility, and a great fact in manifestation) is
only now possible of consideration. Only when man is an
integrated personality does the problem of the Dweller
truly arise, and only when the mind is alert and the intelli-
gence organized (as is becoming the case today on a fairly
large scale) is it possible for man to sense––intelligently
and not just mystically––the Angel and so intuit the
PRESENCE. Only then does the entire question of hin-
drances which the Dweller embodies, and the limitations
which it provides to spiritual contact and realization assume
potent proportions. Only then can they be usefully consid-
ered and steps taken to induce right action. Only when
there is adequate fusion within humanity as a whole does
The Causes of Glamour 153
the great human Dweller on the Threshold appear as an
integrated entity, or the Dweller in a national or racial
sense makes its appearance, spreading and vitalizing na-
tional, racial and planetary glamour, fostering and feeding
individual glamours and making the entire problem unmis-
takably apparent. Only then can the relation between the
soul of humanity and the generated forces of its ancient
and potent personality assume proportions which call for
drastic activity and intelligent cooperation.
Such a time has now come, and in the two books,
Problems of Humanity and The Reappearance of the
Christ, and also in the Wesak and June Full Moon mes-
sages, I have dealt with this most practical and urgent situa-
tion, which is in itself the guarantee of human progress
toward its destined goal as well as the assertion of its
major hindrances to spiritual realization. The sections on
which we shall now be engaged are of prime importance
to all who are in training for initiation. I said "in train-
ing," my brothers; I did not say that you would take
initiation in this life. I know not myself whether you will
or no; the issue lies in your hands and in your planned
destiny––planned by your souls. Your problem is essentially
that of learning to handle the Dweller on the Threshold
and of ascertaining the procedures and the processes
whereby the momentous activity of fusion can take place.
Through the medium of this fusion the Dweller "disap-
pears and is no more seen, though still he functions on the
outer plane, the agent of the Angel; the light absorbs the
Dweller, and into obscuration––radant yet magnetic––this
ancient form of life dissolves though keeping still its form;
it rests and works but is not now itself." Such are the
paradoxical statements of the Old Commentary.
I have earlier defined for you in as simple terms as
possible the nature of the Dweller. I would like, however,
154 Glamour: A World Problem
to enlarge upon one or two points and give one or two
new suggestions which––for the sake of clarity and for your
more rapid comprehension––we will tabulate as follows:
1. The Dweller on the Threshold is essentially the per-
sonality; it is an integrated unity composed of physical
forces, vital energy, astral forces and mental energies,
constituting the sumtotal of the lower nature.
2. The Dweller takes form when a reorientation of
man's life has taken place consciously and under soul
impression; the whole personality is then theoretically
directed towards liberation into service. The problem
is to make the theory and the aspiration facts in ex-
perience.
3. For a great length of time the forces of the person-
ality do not constitute a Dweller. The man is not on
the threshold of divinity; he is not consciously aware
of the Angel. His forces are inchoate; he works un-
consciously in his environment, the victim of circumstance
and of his own nature apparently and under the lure
and the urge of desire for physical plane activity and
existence. When, however, the life of the man is ruled
from the mental plane, plus desire or ambition, and
he is controlled at least to some large extent by mental
influence, then the Dweller begins to take shape as a
unified force.
4. The stages wherein the Dweller on the Threshold
is recognized, subjected to a discriminating discipline
and finally controlled and mastered, are mainly three:
a. The stage wherein the personality dominates and
rules the life and ambitions and the goals of man's
life-endeavor. The Dweller then controls.
b. The stage of a growing cleavage in the conscious-
The Causes of Glamour 155
ness of the disciple. The Dweller or the personality
is then urged in two directions: one, towards the
pursuit of personal ambitions and desires in the
three worlds; the other, in which the effort is made
by the Dweller (note this statement) to take a stand
upon the threshold of divinity and before the Portal
of Initiation.
c. The stage wherein the Dweller consciously seeks
the cooperation of the soul and, though still in itself
essentially constituting a barrier to spiritual pro-
gress, is more and more influenced by the soul than
by its lower nature.
5. When the final stage is reached (and many are now
reaching it today) the disciple strives with more or
less success to steady the Dweller (by learning to "hold
the mind steady in the light" and thus controlling the
lower nature). In this way the constant fluid changeful-
ness of the Dweller is gradually overcome; its orienta-
tion towards reality and away from the Great Illusion
is made effective, and the Angel and the Dweller are
slowly brought into a close rapport.
6. In the earlier stages of effort and of attempted con-
trol, the Dweller is positive and the Soul is negative in
their effects in the three worlds of human endeavor.
Then there is a period of oscillation, leading to a life
of equilibrium wherein neither aspect appears to domi-
nate; after that the balance changes and the personality
steadily becomes negative and the soul or psyche be-
comes dominant and positive.
7. The astrological influences can potently affect these
situations and––speaking generally and within certain
esoteric limits––it might be noted that:
156 Glamour: A World Problem
a. Leo...........controls the positive Dweller.
b. Gemini........controls the processes of oscillation.
c. Sagittarius...controls the negative Dweller.
It might be added that the three signs––Scorpio, Sagit-
tarius, Capricorn––lead finally to the fusion of the
Dweller and the Angel.
8. The soul ray controls and conditions the activity of
the Angel and its type of influence upon the Dweller. It
affects karma, times and seasons.
9. The personality ray controls the Dweller in all the
earlier states and up to the time when the soul ray
begins steadily to produce a growing effect. This per-
sonality ray is, as you know, a combination of three
energies which produce the fourth or personality ray,
through the medium of their interrelation over a vast
period of time.
10. Therefore, the five types of energy which I indi-
cated to you as of importance in your own lives when
I gave you indications as to the nature of your five
controlling rays, govern also the relation between the
Dweller and the Angel, both in the individual and in
humanity as a whole. These five are the rays of the
physical body, the astral ray, the mind ray, the per-
sonality ray and the soul ray.
11. The rays which govern humanity and which condi-
tion humanity and the present world problem are as
follows:
a. The Soul ray..........2nd.....humanity must express love.
b. The personality ray...3rd.....developing intelligence for
transmutation into love-wisdom.
c. Mind ray..............5th.....scientific achievement.
d. Astral ray............6th.....idealistic development.
e. Physical ray..........7th.....organization. Business.
The Causes of Glamour 157
The soul ray controls for an entire life period. The
personality rays given above are for the Piscean Age
which is now beginning to pass out; but these have
definitely and irrevocably conditioned humanity.
You will note also that the first Ray of Will or
Power is missing as is the fourth Ray of Harmony
through Conflict. This fourth ray is always active as
it controls in a peculiar manner the fourth creative
Hierarchy and might be regarded as forming the basic
personality ray of the fourth creative Hierarchy. The
one given above is a transient and fleeting personality
ray of a minor incarnation.
12. In the Aquarian Age which is rapidly coming, the
Dweller will present slightly different personality
forces:
a. Personality ray..... 5th..... basic and determining.
b. Mind ray.............. 4th..... the creative effect.
c. Astral ray............. 6th..... conditioning incentives.
d. Physical ray......... 7th..... incoming ray.
13. Each great cycle in the zodiac is in the nature of
an incarnation of the human family, and each great
race is a somewhat similar happening; the latter is,
however, of more importance where the human under-
standing and consciousness is concerned. The analogy
is to the few important incarnations in the life of the
soul in contradistinction to the many unimportant and
rapidly succeeding incarnations. Of the important in-
carnations there are three which are of major import:
the Lemurian, the Atlantean, and the Aryan races.
14. Each race produced its own type of Dweller on
the Threshold who was faced at the close of the spir-
itual cycle (not the physical which goes on to crystalliza-
158 Glamour: A World Problem
tion) when maturity was achieved and a certain initiation
became possible for its advanced humanity.
15. When a racial incarnation and a zodiacal cycle syn-
chronize (which is not always the case) then there
comes a significant and important focusing of the at-
tention of the Dweller on the Angel and vice versa.
This is taking place at this time at the close of the
Piscean era and when the Aryan race has reached ma-
turity and a relatively high water mark of development.
Discipleship is significant of maturity, and it is with
mature development that the Dweller is met. The
Aryan race is ready for discipleship.
16. The development of sensitivity in the individual
and in the race indicates the imminence of the recog-
nition of the Angel from both angles of vision and the
immediacy of the opportunity. This opportunity for
active fusion has never been so true as now.
17. The lines of demarcation as existing between the
recognized areas of influence between the Dweller and
the Angel are clearer than ever before in the history of
the race. Man knows the difference between right and
wrong and must now choose the way that he shall go.
In the Atlantean racial crisis (which was also a com-
plete human crisis), the history of which is perpetuated
for us in the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna––symbol of the
then disciple and the world disciple––was frankly be-
wildered. This is not so true now. The disciples of
the world and the world disciple do see the issues today
relatively quite clearly. Will expediency win or will
the Dweller be sacrificed with love and understanding
to the Angel? This is the major problem.
The Causes of Glamour 159
I will ask you, my brother, to do two things: study the
above ideas in the light of the present world crisis, and in
the light of your own soul-personality problem.
Advanced humanity stands, as the Dweller, on the very
threshold of divinity. The Angel stands expectant––ab-
sorbed in the PRESENCE yet ready to absorb the Dweller.
Humanity has advanced in consciousness to the very boun-
daries of the world of spiritual values and the kingdom of
Light and of God. The Angel has "come to Earth" in
expectation of recognition––an event of which the advent
of Christ two thousand years ago was the symbol and the
precursor. This is the situation where all advanced aspir-
ants are concerned. It can be yours. It is the situation also
where humanity as a whole is concerned and the approach-
ing Hierarchy. The consciousness of humanity from the
higher and spiritual standpoint functions today through the
steadily growing band of world servers, world aspirants
and world disciples, and their name is Legion.
Humanity today is the Dweller whilst the Hierarchy
of Souls is the Angel and behind stands the PRESENCE of
Divinity Itself, intuited by the Hierarchy and dimly sensed
by humanity but providing in this manner that threefold
synthesis which is divine manifestation in form.
All these three have powerful emanations (though the
emanation of the PRESENCE via Shamballa has been wisely
held in leash since the human race came into being). They all
have auras, if you care so to call them, and in the three
worlds at present that of the Dweller is still the most power-
ful, just as in the life of the aspirant, his personality is as yet
the dominant predisposing factor. It is this powerful human
emanation which constitutes the major glamour in the life of
humanity and of the individual disciple. It is a synthesis of
glamour, fused and blended by the personality ray but pre-
cipitated by the effect of the steadily influencing soul ray. It
160 Glamour: A World Problem
is the shadow or distortion of reality, now sensed for the
first time on a large scale by the race of men and thrown
into high relief by the light which shines from the Angel, the
transmitter of energy from the PRESENCE.
And so they stand––Humanity and the Hierarchy. And
so you stand, my brother, personality and soul, with free-
dom to go forward into the light if you so determine or to
remain static and unprogressive, learning nothing and get-
ting nowhere; you are equally free to return to identifica-
tion with the Dweller, negating thus the influence of the
Angel, refusing imminent opportunity and postponing––
until a much later cycle––your determining choice. This is
true of you and of Humanity as a whole. Will humanity's
third ray materialistic personality dominate the present
situation or will its soul of love prove the most powerful
factor, taking hold of the personality and its little issues,
leading it to discriminate rightly and to recognize the true
values and thus bring in the age of soul or hierarchical
control? Time alone will show.
I will give you no more today. I am anxious for these
few essential statements to be mastered by all of you, prior
to our taking up Section III. I am anxious too for the
general group instructions, which you have lately received,
to take much of your time, interest and attention. Inner
group adjustments and more firmly established group re-
lations are urgently needed and upon these I ask you to
work. I would remind you here also that––as in all else
in manifestation––there is a group personality and a group
soul; you must learn clearly to distinguish between the two
and to throw the entire weight of your influence, desire
and pressure on the side of the Group Angel. In this way
there might occur that stupendous recognition for which
all initiation prepares the applicant––the revelation of the
PRESENCE.
161
SECTION THREE
THE ENDING OF GLAMOUR
We come now to the consideration of the third section
relating to world glamour. It is difficult to write clearly
about this matter because we are in the midst of its most
concentrated expression––the worst the world has ever seen
because glamour, incident to centuries of greed and selfish-
ness, of aggression and materialism, has been focused in
a triplicity of nations. It is, therefore, easily to be seen
and most effective in manifestation. Three nations express
the three aspects of world glamour (illusion, glamour and
maya) in an amazing manner, and their powerful assault
upon the consciousness of humanity is dependent not only
upon the response of Germany, Japan and Italy to this
ancient miasma but also upon the fact that every nation––
United Nations as well as Totalitarian Nations––are
tainted with this universal condition. The freedom of the
world is consequently largely dependent upon those people
in every nation who (within themselves) have moved for-
ward out of one or other of these "glamorous illusions and
mayavic impressions" of the human soul into a state of
awareness wherein they can see the conflict in its wider
terms, i.e., as that existing for them between the Dweller
on the Threshold and the Angel of the PRESENCE.
These people are the aspirants, disciples and initiates
of the world. They are aware of the dualism, the essential
dualism, of the conflict and are not so preeminently con-
scious of the threefold nature and the differentiated condi-
tion of the situation which underlies the realized dualism.
162 Glamour: A World Problem
Their approach to the problem is therefore simpler and,
because of this, world direction lies largely in their hands
at this time.
It is right here that religion has, as a whole, gone
astray. I refer to orthodox religion. It has been pre-
occupied with the Dweller on the Threshold and the eyes
of the theologian have been held upon the material, phe-
nomenal aspect of life through fear and its immediacy,
and the fact of the Angel has been a theory and a point of
wishful thinking. The balance is being adjusted by the
humanitarian attitudes which are so largely coming into
control, irrespective of any theological trend. These atti-
tudes take their stand upon the belief of the innate right-
ness of the human spirit, in the divinity of man, and upon
the indestructible nature of the soul of mankind. This in-
evitably brings in the concept of the PRESENCE, or of God
Immanent and is the result of the needed revolt against
the belief in God Transcendent. This spiritual revolution
was entirely a balancing process and need cause no basic
concern, for God Transcendent eternally exists but can only
be seen and known and correctly approached by God
Immanent––immanent in individual man, in groups and na-
tions, in organized forms and in religion, in humanity as
a whole and in the planetary Life Itself. Humanity is to-
day (and has been for ages) battling illusion, glamour and
maya. Advanced thinkers, those upon the Probationary
Path, upon the Path of Discipleship, and the Path of Initia-
tion have reached a point where materialism and spiritual-
ity, the Dweller on the Threshold and the Angel of the
PRESENCE, and the basic dualism of manifestation can be
seen clearly defined. Because of this clarity of demarcation,
the issues underlying the present world events, the objectives
of the present worldwide struggle, the modes and methods
of reestablishing the spiritual contact so prevalent in At-
The Ending of Glamour 163
lantean days and so long lost, and the recognition of the
techniques which can bring in the new world era and its
cultural order can be clearly noted and appraised.
All generalizations admit of error. It might, however,
be said that Germany has focused in herself world glamour
––the most potent and expressive of the three aspects of
glamour. Japan is manifesting the force of maya––the
crudest form of material force. Italy, individualistic and
mentally polarized, is the expression of world illusion. The
United Nations, with all their faults, limitations, weaknesses
and nationalisms, are focusing the conflict between the
Dweller and the Angel, and thus the three forms of glamour
and the final form of the conflict between the spiritual ideal
and its material opponent are appearing simultaneously.
The United Nations are, however, gradually and most
decisively throwing the weight of their effort and aspiration
on to the side of the Angel, thus restoring the lost balance
and slowly producing on a planetary scale those attributes
and conditions which will eventually dispel illusion, dissipate
glamour and devitalize the prevalent maya. This they are
doing by the increased clear thinking of the general public
of all the nations, bound together to conquer the three Axis
Powers, by their growing ability to conceive ideas in terms
of the whole, in terms of a desirable world order or federa-
tion, and their capacity to discriminate between the Forces
of Light and the potency of evil or materialism.
The work being done by those who see the world stage
as the arena for the conflict between the Dweller on the
Threshold and the Angel of the PRESENCE might be itemized
as:
1. The producing of those world conditions in which
the Forces of Light can overcome the Forces of Evil. This
they do by the weight of their armed forces, plus their
clear insight.
 The Ending of Glamour 203
place to planned efforts to meet desire, involving the direc-
tive use of the mind. Thus the line of demarcation between
the animal and the human has become increasingly appar-
ent and the first and basic expression of pure selfishness ap-
peared aeons ago. Later, as evolution proceeded and desire
shifted from one planned satisfaction to another, it began
to take on a less physical aspect and men sought pleasure in
emotional experience and in its dramatization: this led to
the establishment of the drama as its first artistic expres-
sion; by means of this, down the ages, man has supplemented
individual emotional and dramatic living with a vicarious
submergence in it, thus exteriorizing himself and supple-
menting his personal dramas, desires, and objectives with
those which were developed by means of the creative im-
agination, thus laying the foundation for the recognition––
intelligent and real––of the part in relation to the whole.
Thus from earliest Atlantean times the foundation was laid
for the unfoldment of the sense of mystical duality through
the various stages of an anthropomorphic recognition of
deity to the recognition of the real in man himself, until
finally we arrive at the proposition which faces the disciple.
Then the Dweller on the Threshold confronts the Angel of
the Presence and the last and major conflict is fought out.
This dualistic consciousness culminates at the time of
the third initiation in the final fight between the pairs of
opposites and the triumphant victory of the Angel––the
embodiment of the Forces of Good in the individual, in the
group and in humanity. Then dualism and the desire for
that which is material and not oneself (as identified with
the Whole) dies out. Unity and the "life more abundantly"
is achieved.
The process followed by the disciple who is consciously
working at the dissipation of glamour in his life can be
The Technique of Fusion 267
Before Him lies the attainment of a still higher range
of perceptions and, in order to garner the reward of those
possible contacts, He has to master techniques and methods
of development which will make Him omnipotent and,
therefore, expressive of the highest of the three divine
aspects. This development will put into His grasp poten-
cies and experiences which can only be manipulated and
understood through the scientific activity of the WILL and
this must be implemented from a point of tension, focused
in whatever is meant by the word "Monad." Do you know
what that means, my brother? I am sure that you do not.
Only the Masters of the Wisdom have any appreciation of
these final unfoldments and then only in the sense of the
Will-full aspiration––a phase of aspiration which is charac-
terized by the conscious will, just as the aspiration of the
disciple is characterized by sublimated desire. These things
are, however, beyond the comprehension of the average
disciple; their sole value is to depict the unending oppor-
tunity which presents itself at every stage and point of
crisis upon the everlasting Way.
We are concerned at this time with the great point of
crisis which faces the disciple when he attempts to resolve
the final pair of opposites, prior to certain major initiations;
this is the confronting the personality by the Angel of the
PRESENCE. There is no need for me to define the two aspects
of the disciple's nature, for that is what they essentially are.
You have been told and have known that the Dweller upon
the Threshold is the fully developed personality––the sum-
total of all the past and the composite presentation upon
the physical plane of all unresolved problems, all un-
declared desires, all latent characteristics and qualities, all
phases of thought and of self-will, all lower potencies and
ancient habits of any of the three bodies (both bad and
good). These, in their totality, are brought to the surface
268 Glamour: A World Problem
of consciousness, there to be dealt with in such a way that
their control is broken. The disciple is then free to take the
final initiations. This process is not consummated in one
particular facing of the two antagonistic forces. It is a
threefold process, covering each of the three periods before
the first three initiations or (from the angle of the Hier-
archy) before the two initiations of the threshold and the
first major initiation, the Transfiguration.
For many lives, the disciple has been dwelling upon the
threshold. He himself is the Dweller. Behind the slowly
opening door he senses life, energy, spiritual embodiment,
and the fact of the Angel. Between him and that door
is a burning-ground; this he faces, and this he knows he
has to cross if he seeks to pass through the door. The
question for him to answer is whether his will to achieve
is strong enough for him to submit his personal lower self
to the fires of the final purification. The personal self is
now very highly developed; it is a useful instrument which
the soul can use; it is a highly trained agent for service;
it is essentially a piece of adequate and useful equipment.
It has, however, its points of weakness which are liable
at any time to present points of crisis; it has likewise its
points of strength which can be transmuted with relative
ease into points of tension; on the whole, it is a dependable
instrument and one which can render good service. Can it
and should it be sacrificed so that (esoterically speaking)
its life is lost and in its place consecration and devotion are
substituted? This is a hard problem for all disciples to
solve, to understand and to make effectively practical. Only
by crossing the burning ground three successive times are
all impediments to the free use of the will destroyed. The
relation between the Angel and the Dweller must be re-
leased, by means of the will, to full expression. I here
refer to the spiritual will and to its three aspects which
The Technique of Fusion 269
must be brought into play before the divine will can begin
to control. The disciple brings the two aspects of his nature
together in full consciousness and with clear intention
through a planned act of the will, and this act produces
a point of tension in the "center of the burning-ground
wherein the two can meet," as the ancient Archives put it.
I would call your attention to the fact that it is at a
"midway point" that the great submission of the lower to
the higher takes place. It does not happen when the disciple
hovers uncertainly upon the periphery of the burning-
round or when he stands before the door with the burning
ground experience behind him. The essential point of crisis,
producing the needed point of tension, is the result of the
"invocative decision" of the personality which, in time,
produces an "evocative response" from the Angel. The
two factors involved (and forget not, my brother, that all
this takes place within the field of consciousness of the
disciple) move together and towards each other. In the
center of the burning ground they meet, and then the lesser
light (a true light in its own right) of the personality is
absorbed into the greater light of the Angel or soul. The
Angel, therefore, "occultly obliterates" the Dweller who
becomes lost to sight in the radiant aura of the Angel. This
has been symbolically portrayed for us in the picture book
of the heavens when, according to Catholic Festivals, the
Assumption of the Virgin takes place and the constellation
Virgo is lost to sight in the radiance of the sun. There
you have the three factors:
1. The Virgin..... material form...... personality... Dweller
2. The Sun......... spiritual nature.... soul.............. Angel.
3. The Earth....... aspiring man....... the disciple...
The personality remains; it still exists but it is seen no more
as of old. The light of the Angel envelops it; the burning
ground has done its work and the personality is now nothing
270 Glamour: A World Problem
more or less than the purified shell or form through which
the light, the radiance, the quality and the characteristics of
the Angel can shine. It is a fusion of lights, with the
stronger and the more powerful obliterating the lesser.
How has this been brought about? I refer not here
to the preparation of the Dweller on the Threshold for this
great event or to the aeon of disciplining, of preparation,
of experiment and of experience from life to life which
has made this consummating event possible and successful.
The two aspects in man can only meet in full power and
with intention and finality when illusion can no longer con-
trol the mind, when glamour has lost all power to veil
and when the forces of maya can no longer hinder. Dis-
crimination, dispassion and indifference have produced the
dispelling through focused light, the dissipating potency
of distributed light and the directing power of light energy.
Only five recognitions now control the disciple:
1. The fact of his discipleship.
2. The perception of the Angel, waiting and dynamic.
3. The invocative appeal of the Dweller on the Threshold.
4. The necessity to use the will in a new and different manner.
5. The need to cross the burning ground.
The issues are now entirely clear. It is a question of timing
and of decision. I would remind you that in all these proc-
esses, it is the disciple who, in full consciousness, acts.
He initiates all the processes himself. It is not the Angel
or the Dweller but the spiritual man himself who has to
employ the will and take definite forward moving action.
Once the disciple has taken the necessary steps and moved
irrevocably forward, the response of the Angel is sure,
automatic and all-enveloping. Complete obliteration of
The Technique of Fusion 271
the personal self in three successive stages is the immediate
and normal result. It was to this that John the Baptist
referred when he said "He shall increase but I must de-
crease." When he spoke these words, he spoke as a disciple,
prior to the second initiation of the threshold. This occult
waxing and waning is portrayed for us in the phases of
the moon and, for the planet as a whole, in the sign Gemini,
where the light of one of the twins is slowly dimming and
the light of the other is gaining in intensity.
When this "occult obliteration" has taken place, what
then is the destiny of the disciple? It is complete control
by the soul and this, in practice, connotes group realization,
group work, group service and eventually group initiation.
With these developments, it is not my intent to deal, for
I have covered much of these matters in my other books.
Here I have been dealing in this short elucidation with the
effects that substances and the substantial forces, found in
the three worlds, produce in the disciple and as they affect
the aspirant. I have not considered the problem of glamour,
illusion and maya from the angle of average man. The
latter is necessarily immersed in them, and under their con-
stant impact he passes his life. By their means he learns.
He is not at the point where he seeks deliverance from
them as does the man upon the Path. I have, therefore,
considered the problem from the angle of the disciples and
aspirants.
From them the WAY opens up, and for them comes
the conscious recognition of the light. The need for the
service of men and women, free from illusion and glamour,
has never been so dramatically present as it is today and
it is for these potential servers of a desperate necessity
that I have written.
That the Angel of the PRESENCE may make His
nearness felt and inspire you to pass courageously through
272 Glamour: A World Problem
the fires of the burning ground is my earnest prayer; that
the fact of the PRESENCE may be sensed by you and lead
you to greater activity––once the burning ground is passed
––is my deepest wish for you; and that the light may shine
upon your way and bring a certain and assured consumma-
tion of all the travail and struggle which has characterized
your way of life is my heart's desire for you. To more
active and steady enterprise I call you.
THE TIBETAN.
See also the Techniques of Fusion and Integration in A Treatise on
the Seven Rays, Vol. II, Esoteric Psychology, pp. 345-401.
Telepathy and the Etheric Vehicle by Alice A. Bailey, 1950
Seventh printing, 1971 (Paperback)
Telepathy and the Etheric Vehicle 79
deva hierarchy. The angels and devas are to the vegetable
kingdom what the spiritual Hierarchy is to humanity. This
is, of course, a mystery with which you have no concern.
But impressions and reactions are to be found in both these
kingdoms, and upon such response depends the evolution
of the indwelling consciousness.
The animal kingdom has a peculiar relation to the
fourth kingdom in nature, and the unfolding of the animal
consciousness proceeds along lines paralleling, yet dissimilar
to that of the human being who is beginning to respond to
the kingdom of souls, the fifth kingdom. It is the karma
and destiny of the fourth kingdom to be the impressing
agent for the third; the problem is complicated, however,
by the fact that the animal kingdom antedates the human
and had, therefore, generated a measure of karma––both
good and evil––prior to the appearance of mankind. The
"impressing process" carried forward by humanity is modi-
fied and often negated by two factors:
1. Human ignorance and selfishness, plus inability to
work consciously and intelligently with the embry-
onic minds within animal forms: this is true except
in a few (a very few) cases which involve the do-
mestic animals. When humanity is itself further
advanced, its intelligent impression upon the con-
sciousness of the animal kingdom will produce
planetary results. At present this is not so. It will
only come when the animal kingdom (as a result of
human understanding) becomes invocative.
2. The self-generated karma of the animal kingdom
which is largely being worked off in its relation to
mankind today. The karmic entity––holding a type
of rule within the third kingdom––is a part of the
planetary Dweller on the Threshold.
80 Telepathy and the Etheric Vehicle
You will note, therefore, the amazing planetary sequence
of impression––all of it emanating from the highest pos-
sible sources, though stepped down and regulated to the
receiving factors; all of it concerned to a greater or less
degree (according to the quality of the mechanism of re-
ception) with the will and purpose of Sanat Kumara; all
of it, during the aeons, achieving a group potency and a
responding sensitivity.
The main factor preventing a completely unimpeded
sequence of impression from Shamballa straight down into
the mineral kingdom, via all the other kingdoms, is the
factor of freewill, resulting in karmic responsibility. This
can be either good or bad. It is interesting to note here
that both the good and the bad karma produce conditions
which not only have to be worked out, but that they lead
to conditions which delay what we––from our limited point
of view––might look upon as the liberation of the planet.
The generating of good karma necessitates the "living
through" of conditions where everything (for the man re-
sponsible or for any other form within its limitations) is
good, happy, beneficent and useful. The evil karma gen-
erated in any kingdom in relation to the "realm where
dwelleth the planetary Dweller on the Threshold" stands
between the cosmic Door of Initiation and our planetary
Logos. This Dweller represents all the mistakes and errors
due to wrong reactions, unrecognized contacts, deliberate
choices made in defiance of known good, and mass move-
ments and mass activities which are temporarily not pro-
gressive in time and space. I realize that where these facts
apply to the subhuman kingdoms in nature you are not
aware of what I mean, but that does not alter the law or
movements which are in no way related to human evolution.
In connection with the planetary Logos I would like to add
that in that great planetary struggle and His subsequent
The Externalization of the Hierarchy by Alice A. Bailey, 1957
Fifth printing, 1976 (2nd Paperback Edition)
THE GENERAL WORLD PICTURE 109
1. Upon the point achieved in racial evolution. This
today warrants the building of a better vehicle for
human and racial expression.
2. Upon the karmic causes which––as far as present
humanity is concerned––can be traced back to an
ancient conflict upon old Atlantis.
3. Upon the coming into incarnation of certain potent
personalities whose dharma or destiny it is to bring
about great evolutionary changes.
4. Upon certain planetary happenings, connected with
the life of the One "in Whom we live and move and
have our being." These involve the impact upon
our planet of Forces and Energies which will be in-
strumental in altering the existing civilization and
culture, in climaxing karmic necessity and in thus
engineering release, presenting humanity with that
stage in the experience of the disciple which we call
"the meeting of the Dweller on the Threshold with
the Angel of the Presence," and inducing as a con-
sequence a certain planetary initiation.
These four stages of the Law of Cause and Effect (as
it affects humanity at this time) might be called:
1. The perfecting of form expression..... Law of Evolution
2. The precipitation of karma................. Law of Cause
and Effect
3. The achievement of personality......... Law of Polar
(The Dweller on the Threshold)......... Opposites
4. The attainment of planetary Law of
initiation............................................. Initiation
You may perhaps think at this point that I am being
academic and that the world stress at this time is such that
love, sympathy and kind words are needed far more than
 THE GENERAL WORLD PICTURE 137
ways according to the point of view and the background
of thought. It can be called the conflict between Christ
and anti-Christ but not as those who usually employ those
phrases understand them. No one nation is expressive of the
spirit of anti-Christ, just as no one nation expresses the
spirit of Christ. Christ and anti-Christ are the dualities of
spirituality and materialism, both in the individual and in
humanity as a whole. Or you can speak of God and the
Devil with the same basic implications. For what is man
himself but an expression of divinity (God) in a material
form (the Devil), and what is matter but the medium
through which divinity must eventually manifest in all its
glory? But when that takes place, matter will no longer
be a controlling factor but simply a medium of expression.
The battle is therefore on between the form side of life
and the soul. The Dweller on the Threshold (the threshold
of divinity, my brothers) is humanity itself with its ancient
habits of thought, its selfishness and greed. Humanity today
stands face to face with the Angel of the Presence––the
Soul Whose nature is love and light and inclusive under-
standing, The great problem today is which of these two
will emerge the victor out of the conflict, and which of
these two great agencies of life will determine humanities
future and indicate the way which humanity will decide
to go.
The issues at stake are clear to all right-thinking people.
Intolerance and an intense national pride and self-satisfac-
tion can blind men to the facts of the case today, but there
are enough people thinking clearly to make the future of
right decision more probable than at any previous time in
the history of the race.
Preparation for World Goodwill
The causes of the present war are ancient. This histor-
ical sequence of the predisposing factors can be clearly
traced in the exoteric records of all nations as well as in
the esoteric records of the Hierarchy. The inherent human
170 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
pressed by the light in the head, or by the head center and
its externalization, the pineal gland).
You will, therefore, note afresh the practical significance
of these fourth and fifth phrases of the Great Invocation.
One serves to arouse humanity (as a planetary center) to
activity and realization and the other serves to aid the
Hierarchy in its ancient efforts so that the two are then
related to each other's magnetic fields and produce a blend-
ing and a synthesis which will lead to a fuller expression of
the soul of divinity through the medium of humanity.
Ponder on this statement.
In the esoteric teaching, this takes place in the life of
the individual when––by an act of the will––the center at
the base of the spine is aroused and the fire and the light
of the personal threefold life (one aspect of which is often
called the kundalini fire) is carried upwards and merged
with the power and the light of the soul. The major ap-
proach of the two basic energies of form and soul (as an
expression of spirit) are thereby related within the human
being; the "marriage in the heavens" takes place and the
task of the creative process of incarnation or individual
manifestation is on the way to completion. Within the plan-
etary life, the same process goes on. The life of humanity
as a whole (which is intelligent form life) and the life of
the Hierarchy (which is the life of the soul) under impulse
from the Spirit or will aspect as symbolized in Shamballa, are
fused and blended and then a new departure in the evolu-
tionary process becomes possible. The kingdom of God,
which is the kingdom of souls, and the human kingdom
as mutually expressive and interrelated, are perfectly syn-
thesized and anchored on earth. The glory of the One can
then be faintly seen, which is the glory of Shamballa. The
Dweller upon the threshold of divinity and the Angel of
the Presence then stand face to face.
This is the situation today. Tomorrow they will blend
and synthesize and the glory of God will appear on earth.
The second great Approach will have been achieved.
292 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
and out of the world of illusion. Each revelation brings him
nearer to the world of causes.
At the present time, the Avatars most easily recognized
and known are the Buddha and the Christ, because Their
messages are familiar to all and the fruits of Their lives and
words have conditioned the thinking and the civilizations
of both hemispheres; because They are divine-human Ava-
tars and represent something which humanity can more
easily understand; because They are of like nature to man-
kind, "flesh of our flesh and spirit of our spirit." They there-
fore mean more to us than any other Divine Emergence.
They are known, loved and followed by countless millions.
I would ask you to ponder on the potency of the nucleus
of force which They have set up. The establishing of a
nucleus of energy, spiritually positive, is the constant task
of an Avatar. He focuses or anchors a dynamic truth, a
potent thoughtform or a vortex of attractive energy in
the three worlds of human living. Then, as the centuries
pass, that truth and the effect of Their lives and words
begin steadily to condition human thinking; the established
thoughtform acts increasingly as a transmitter of divine
energy as it expresses a divine idea, and this in time produces
a civilization, with its accompanying culture, religions, poli-
cies, governments and educational processes. Thus is history
made. History is but the record of man's cyclic reaction to
some inflowing divine energy, to some Avatar or some in-
spired Leader.
Divine Intervention
In considering the subject of Avatars I would like to
point out that (from the standpoint of mankind at his
present point in evolution) Avatars are of two kind, as
might be expected when the consciousness of humanity is
subject to the control of the pairs of opposites. These two
are:
1. Those Avatars Who are the embodiment of the
Angel of the Presence, whether that Presence is the
EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 293
soul in man, the planetary Logos, some extra-
planetary Entity, some Cosmic Being, or an Ex-
pression of Cosmic Good.
2. Those Avatars who are embodiments of the Dweller
on the Threshold, whether that Dweller is the human
Dweller on the Threshold, planetary Forces of
Materialism, or some Aspect of Cosmic Evil.
Let me attempt to make this analogy a little clearer. Just
as in the case of individual man there comes a point in his
life experience when the Angel of the Presence is sensed,
known, seen and recognized as the revealer of divinity, so
in the history of the race of men, the same great illumina-
tion may come. Revelation confronts the aspirant. Revela-
tion confronts humanity. God is known within the human
heart. God is known by mankind. This recognition of divin-
ity in its varying aspects is naturally a progressive one––each
stage and each life bringing its own revelation of the beauty
of divinity and the glory of light more truly and clearly
before the disciple. Similarly, there come cycles wherein
the Dweller on the Threshold appears and confronts the
aspirant, challenging his purpose and progress and blocking
the door which leads to expanded life and liberation. The
Dweller challenges the freedom of the human soul. So it
is also in the life of a nation, a race, and humanity as a
whole.
The Angel of the Presence indicates divine possibility,
reveals to the attentive disciple the next step towards libera-
tion which must be made, and throws light upon the imme-
diate stage of the Path to Light which must be trodden. So
does the Avatar Who reveals the Lighted Way to humanity.
The Dweller on the Threshold summarizes in itself the
evil tendencies, the accumulated limitations and the sum-
total of the selfish habits and desires which are characteristic
of the material nature of the disciple. The Angel of the
Presence indicates the future possibility and the divine
nature. So does the Avatar. The Dweller on the Threshold
indicates the past with its limitations and evil habits. So
294 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
do those Avatars Who from time to time appear as the
embodiments of evil and of the lower nature of mankind.
And, my brother, They do appear from age to age.
Some cycles in a disciple's life present one aspect of a
"confrontation" and some another. In one life he may be
entirely occupied with fighting the Dweller on the Threshold
or with orienting himself to the Angel of the Presence and
permitting the divine conditioning energy to flow into him;
he may be succumbing to the influence of the dread sumtotal
of his evil and material desires or he may be drawing grad-
ually nearer to the Angel. But––and this is the point of
importance––it is he himself who evokes one or other of
these manifestations. So it is with humanity. The call of
humanities soul, or of humanities material nature, must
evoke response, and thus an Avatar can manifest. It is the
magnetic appeal or the massed intent of the disciple or of
humanity which produces the manifestation. In other lives,
the disciple may simply swing between the two poles of his
being, with no conscious effort, no direct confrontation and
no clear understanding of life purpose. So does humanity.
Eventually, however, there comes a life wherein the
disciple is confronted by both the Dweller and the Angel
simultaneously and the major conflict of his experience takes
place. So it is today in the world. The spiritual and the
material are in conflict and humanity itself is the battle-
ground.
Again, a correspondence to the Doctrine of Avatars can
be seen in the disciple's individual life. When he has
achieved right desire and has made a true effort towards
correct orientation, then––when the conflict between good
and evil is at its height––there comes a moment when he
demands more light, more power, more understanding, and
liberation to take his next forward step. When he can
make this demand with firm intent and can stand steady
and unafraid, response will inevitably come from the very
Presence Itself. A manifestation of light and love and power
will stream forth. Recognition of need has then evoked
response. The conflict ceases; the Dweller departs to his
EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 295
own place; the Path ahead lies clear; the disciple can move
forward with assurance, and a better life dawns for him.
So it is for humanity. A demand rises to the very gates
of Heaven; the massed intent of humanity is that evil must
end and a better and truer life become possible. At the
moment of greatest tension and of difficulty the demand goes
forth. Response comes. The Avatar appears and light pours
in making the way clear. New hope awakens and fresh de-
terminations are made. Strength to establish right relation-
ships streams through the body of humanity, and mankind
emerges into a more spacious life, conditioned by truer
values. A fusion becomes possible between the outer world
of daily living and the inner world of spiritual realities. A
fresh influx of love and light is possible.
Today the moment of adequate tension in the life of
humanity has been reached. The Angel of the Presence and
the Dweller on the Threshold are at grips. Humanity stands
apparently at its darkest hour. But the cry is going forth
for aid, for relief, for revelation, for light, and for strength
to shake off that which is evil. The massed intent of the
world aspirants is directed towards the world of truer values,
towards better human relations, more enlightened living
and a better understanding between all men and peoples.
With massed intent they stand, and their ranks are steadily
increasing. With an increased focus of the will-to-good, with
a clearer apprehension of future possibility, with a fixed de-
termination that the world move forward in conformity
with the divine pattern, and with an urgent cry for help,
humanity stands expectant of relief. In every land there is
a growing recognition that when mankind reaches the psy-
chological point where, having done all, there is naught to
do but stand, then some Expression of a divine determination
to intervene will appear; there is a growing belief that human
effort towards righteous action will be supplemented by the
emergence of a divine Force, Person or Event which will
bring the conflict to an end.
It might here be pointed out that in similar though
somewhat less potent crises in the past, this divine interven-
296 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
tion superseded human effort, but that it is hoped by Those
Who are seeking to aid humanity that such intervention
will today simply supplement human effort––a very different
thing.
Therefore, humanity everywhere today awaits the Com-
ing One. The Avatar is sensed as being on His way. The
second Coming (according to prophecy) is imminent, and
from the lips of disciples, mystics, aspirants and all enlight-
ened people in all lands the cry goes up, "Let light and love
and power and death fulfill the purpose of the Coming
One." Those words are a demand, a consecration, a sacri-
fice, a statement of belief and a challenge to the Avatar
Who waits in His High Place until the demand is adequate,
and the cry clear enough to warrant His descent and His
appearance.
Demand without paralleling action is useless, just as
faith without works is dead. It is here that there is a break
in the magnetic link which should unite the Avatar with
the demand for His coming forth. His emergence must be
caused by a fivefold chain or thread of energy: the focused
will of the people, the massed intent of the world disciples
and aspirants, plus their desire, their active participation in
the task of clearing the way for Him, and complete selfless-
ness. Only when humanity has itself done everything pos-
sible to adjust that which is wrong and to end that which
is evil, and has carried this effort even to the sacrifice of life
itself, can He, the Desire of all nations, appear.
Today this is being attempted. The great event of the
appearance of the Avatar can be made possible by a little
increased effort. The mission of the Buddha at this par-
ticular Wesak Festival is to add that new impetus, that fresh
illumination, and that added power and fixed purpose which
will enable mankind to surmount this crisis. From the side
of the spiritual Forces of the planet, everything will then
have been done to make the appearance of the Avatar pos-
sible. From the side of humanity, I would ask you What
will be done?
Between the Source from which all Avatars come forth
EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 297
and humanity, stands the Hierarchy of Love, stands Christ
and His disciples, stand the Masters of the Wisdom. They
are united, all of Them, in one stupendous effort to aid
mankind at this time to surmount the Dweller on the Thresh-
old and to come closer to the Angel. This necessitates some
greater help and this help will be forthcoming when human-
ity and the Hierarchy in one fused and blended effort stand
with massed intent, invoking that aid and expecting it also.
The Appearance of Avatars
Since the year 1400 (a date to which I referred earlier)
there have been constant appearances of lesser avatars, called
forth in response to minor crises, to national dilemmas and
religious necessity. They have taken the form of those men
and women who have championed successfully some truth
or some right cause, some human right or correct human
demand. All these people have worked actively upon the
physical plane and seldom received recognition for what
they truly were; only history, at a later date, laid emphasis
upon their achievement. But they changed the current of
men's thoughts; they pointed a way to a better life; they
pioneered into new territories of human achievement. Such
a one was Luther; another was Columbus; still others were
Shakespeare and Leonardo da Vinci––to mention only four
who so lived and thought and acted that they conditioned
after events in some field of human living and are still recog-
nized as pioneering souls, as leaders of men. With these
disciples I shall not deal. They embodied ideas and made
history––not the history of conquest but the history of
progress. I seek to consider with you those still greater
Appearances Who come forth from some hidden center,
remote from or near to humanity, and Who "release from
crisis the sons of men." These fall mainly into four rela-
tively minor groups:
1. Racial Avatars. These Appearances are evoked by the
genius and destiny of a race. The typical man (in quality
and consciousness, not necessarily physically) foreshadows
 EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 355
sciousness of humanity is dependent not only upon the
response of Germany, Japan and Italy to this ancient miasma
but also upon the fact that every nation––the United Nations
as well as the Totalitarian Nations––are tainted with this
universal condition. The freedom of the world is conse-
quently largely dependent upon those people in every nation
who (within themselves) have moved forward out of one
or other of these "glamorous illusions of mayavic impres-
sions" of the human soul into a state of awareness wherein
they can see the conflict in its wider terms, i.e., as that exist-
ing for them between the Dweller on the Threshold and
the Angel of the Presence.
These people are the aspirants, the disciples and the
initiates of the world. They are aware of the dualism, the
essential dualism, of the conflict and are not so preeminently
conscious of the threefold nature and the differentiated con-
dition of the situation which underlies the realized dualism.
Their approach to the problem is therefore simpler and, be-
cause of this, world direction lies largely in their hands at
this time.
It is right here that religion has, as a whole, gone astray.
I refer to orthodox religion. It has been preoccupied with
the Dweller on the Threshold and the eyes of the theologian
have been held upon the material, phenomenal aspect of
life through fear and its immediacy, and the fact of the
Angel has been a theory and a point of wishful thinking.
The balance is being adjusted by the humanitarian attitudes
which are so largely coming into control, irrespective of any
theological trend. These attitudes take their stand upon
belief in the innate rightness of the human spirit, in the
divinity of man and upon the indestructible nature of the
soul of mankind. This inevitably brings in the concept of
the PRESENCE, or of God Immanent and is the result of
the needed revolt against the one-sidedness of the belief in
God Transcendent. This spiritual revolution was entirely a
balancing process and need cause no basic concern, for God
Transcendent eternally exists, but can only be seen and
known and correctly approached by God Immanent––im-
356 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
manent in individual man, in groups and nations, in organ-
ized forms and in religion, in humanity as a whole and in
the planetary Life Itself. Humanity is today (and has been
for ages) battling illusion, glamour and maya. Advanced
thinkers, those upon the Probationary Path, upon the Path
of Discipleship, and the Path of Initiation have reached the
point where materialism and spirituality, the Dweller on
the Threshold and the Angel of the Presence, and the basic
dualism of manifestation can be seen clearly defined. Be-
cause of this clarity of demarcation, the issues underlying
present world events, the objectives of the present worldwide
struggle, the modes and methods of re-establishing the
spiritual contact so prevalent in Atlantean days and so long
lost, and the recognition of the techniques which can bring
in the new world era and its cultural order can be clearly
noted and appraised.
All generalizations admit of error. It might, however,
be said that Germany has focused in herself world glamour
––the most potent and expressive of the three aspects of
glamour. Japan is manifesting the force of maya––the crud-
est form of material force. Italy, individualistic and mentally
polarized, is the expression of world illusion. The United
Nations, with all their faults, limitations, weaknesses and
nationalisms, are focusing the conflict between the Dweller
and the Angel, and thus the three forms of glamour and the
final form of the conflict between the spiritual ideal and its
material opponent are appearing simultaneously. The
United Nations are, however, gradually and most decisively
throwing the weight of their effort and aspiration on to the
side of the Angel, thus restoring the lost balance and slowly
producing on a planetary scale those attitudes and condi-
tions which will eventually dispel illusion, dissipate glamour
and devitalize the prevalent maya. This they are doing by
the increased clear thinking of the general public of all the
nations, bound together to conquer the three Axis Powers,
by their growing ability to conceive ideas in terms of the
whole, in terms of a desirable world order or federation,
 EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 357
and their capacity to discriminate between the Forces of
Light and the potency of evil or materialism.
The work being done by those who see the world stage
as the arena for the conflict between the Dweller on the
Threshold and the Angel of the PRESENCE might be itemized
as follows:
1. The producing of those world conditions in which the
Forces of Light can overcome the Forces of Evil. This they
do by the weight of their armed forces, plus their clear
insight.
2. The educating of humanity in the distinction between
a. Spirituality and materialism, pointing to the differing
goals of the combatant forces.
b. Sharing and greed, outlining a future world wherein
The Four Freedoms will be dominant and all will have
that which is needed for right living-processes.
c. Light and dark, demonstrating the difference between
an illumined future of liberty and opportunity and the
dark future of slavery.
d. Fellowship and separation, indicating a world order
where racial hatreds, caste distinctions and religious dif-
ferences will form no barrier to international under-
standing, and the Axis order of master races, determined
religious attitudes, and enslaved peoples.
e. The whole and the part, pointing to the time which is
approaching (under the evolutionary urge of spirit)
wherein the part or the point of life assumes its respon-
sibility for the whole, and the whole exists for the good
of the part. The dark aspect has been brought about
by ages of glamour. The light is being emphasized
made clear by the world aspirants and disciples who by
their attitudes, their actions, their writings and their
utterances are bringing the light into dark places.
3. Preparing the way for the three spiritual energies which
will sweep humanity into an era of comprehension, leading
358 THE EXTERNALISATION OF THE HIERARCHY
to a focused mental clarification of men's minds through-
out the world. These three imminent energies are
a. The energy of the intuition which will gradually dispel
world illusion, and produce automatically a great aug-
mentation of the ranks of initiates.
b. The activity of light which will dissipate, by the energy
of illumination, the world of glamour and bring many
thousands on to the Path of Discipleship.
c. The energy of inspiration which will bring about,
through the medium of its sweeping potency, the de-
vitalization or the removal, as by a wind, of the attrac-
tive power of maya or substance. This will release un-
told thousands on to the Path of Probation.
4. Releasing new life into the planet through the medium
of every possible agency. The first step towards this release
is the proving that the power of materialism is broken by
the complete defeat of the Axis powers and, secondly, by
the ability of the United Nations to demonstrate (when
this has been done) the potency of the spiritual values by
their constructive undertakings to restore world order and
to lay those foundations which will guarantee a better and
more spiritual way of life. These constructive attitudes and
undertakings must be assumed individually by every person,
and by nations as collective wholes. The first is being under-
taken at this time. The second remains as yet to be done.
5. Bringing home to the nations of the world the truths
taught by the Buddha, the Lord of Light, and the Christ,
the Lord of Love. In this connection it might be pointed
out that basically:
a. The Axis nations need to grasp the teaching of the
Buddha as He enunciated it in the Four Noble Truths;
they need to realize that the cause of all sorrow and woe
is desire––desire for that which is material.
b. The United Nations need to learn to apply the Law of
Love as enunciated in the life of Christ and to express
the truth that "no man liveth unto himself" and no
 EVOLUTIONARY PROGRESS OF THE RACE 359
nation either, and that the goal of all human effort is
loving understanding, prompted by a programme of
love for the whole.
If the lives and teachings of these two great Avatars
can be comprehended and wrought out anew in the lives
of men today, in the world of human affairs, in the realm
of human thinking and in the arena of daily living, the
present world order (which is today largely disorder) can
be so modified and changed that a new world and a new
race of men can gradually come into being. Renunciation
and the use of the sacrificial will should be the keynote for
the interim period after the war, prior to the inauguration
of the New Age.
Students need to remember that all manifestations and
every point of crisis are symbolized by the ancient symbol of
the point within the circle, the focus of power within a
sphere of influence or aura. So it is today with the entire
problem of ending the world glamour and illusion which
fundamentally lie behind the present acute situation and
world catastrophe. The possibility of such a dispelling and
dissipation is definitely centered in the two Avatars, the
Buddha and the Christ.
Within the world of glamour––the world of the astral
plane and of emotions––appeared a point of light. The
Lord of Light, the Buddha, undertook to focus in Himself
the illumination which would eventually make possible the
dissipation of glamour. Within the world of illusion––the
world of the mental plane––appeared the Christ, the Lord
of Love Himself, Who embodied in Himself the power of
the attractive will of God. He undertook to dispel illusion
by drawing to himself (by the potency of love) the hearts
of all men, and stated this determination in the words, "And
I, if I be lifted from the earth, will draw all men unto me."
(John 12:32). From the point they then will have reached,
the world of spiritual perception, of truth and of divine
ideas will stand revealed. The result will be the disappearing
of illusion.
Esoteric Psychology I by Alice A. Bailey, 1936
Tenth printing, 1984 (4th Paperback Edition)
342 A Treatise on the Seven Rays
ward, the glamour is breaking down and the truer values of
group welfare, of group integration, and of group progress
are emerging. The sense of insecurity which is such a dis-
tressing aspect of the present upheaval is due simply to this
destruction of the old sense of values, to that dispelling of
glamour which reveals at present an unfamiliar landscape,
and to the fear and instability which man feels when he
comes up against the world "Dweller on the Threshold."
This has to be broken up and destroyed, for it blocks the
way to the new world of values. The great thought form
which man's greed and materiality have built, down the ages,
is being steadily demolished, and mankind is on the verge of a
liberation which will take him on to the Path of Discipleship.
I refer not here to the final liberation, but to that liberation
which comes from a free choice, wisely used and applied to
the good of the whole, and conditioned by love. Note that
I say, "wisely used." Wisdom, actuated and motivated by
love, and intelligently applied to world problems, is much
needed today and is not yet to be found, except among the
few illumined souls in every nation, in every nation, I say,
without exception. Many more must love with wisdom and
appreciate the group aspiration before we shall see the next
reality to be known and to emerge out of the darkness which
we are now in the process of dispelling.
3. The Ray of the Fourth Kingdom
We now touch briefly upon an obscure and difficult sub-
ject and one that will appeal primarily to those types who
work with the Law of Correspondences. Esotericists must
remember that every kingdom in nature constitutes a totality
of lives. Every atom in every form in nature is a life, and
these lives form the cells of a Being's body or vehicle of
manifestation. There is a Being embodied in every kingdom
 Esoteric Psychology II by Alice A. Bailey, 1942
Seventh printing, 1975 (2nd Paperback Edition)
34 A Treatise on the Seven Rays
enlightened Being, for gain and loss are one; darkness and
light eternally reveal the True; love and desire eternally in-
voke the Life.
Naught disappears but pain. Nothing remains but bliss,––
the bliss of knowledge true, of contact real, of light divine,
the Way to God."
Such is the true goal, as yet unrealizable by us. What is it
that we are endeavoring to do? We are treading the Way of
Release, and on that way, all drops from our hands; every-
thing is taken away, and detachment from the world of phe-
nomenal life and of individuality is inevitably forced upon
us. We are treading the Way of Loneliness, and must learn
eventually that we are essentially neither ego nor non-ego.
Complete detachment and discrimination must finally lead
us to a condition of such complete aloneness that the horror
of the great blackness will settle down upon us. But when
that pall of blackness is lifted and the light again pours in, the
disciple sees that all that was grasped and treasured, and then
lost and removed, has been restored, but with this difference
––that it no longer holds the life imprisoned by desire. We
are treading the Way that leads to the Mountain Top of
Isolation, and will find it full of terror. Upon that mountain
top we must fight the final battle with the Dweller on the
Threshold, only to find that that too is an illusion. That high
point of isolation and the battle itself are only illusions and
figments of unreality; they are the last stronghold of the
ancient glamour and of the great heresy of separateness.
Then we, the Beatific Ones, will eventually find ourselves
merged with all that is, in love and understanding. The isola-
tion, a necessary stage, is itself but an illusion. We are treading
the Way of Purification and step by step all that we cherish
is removed,––lust for form life, desire for love, and the great
glamour of hatred. These disappear and we stand purified and
312 A Treatise on the Seven Rays
There is a higher duality to which it is necessary that we
refer. There is, for the disciples, the duality which becomes
obvious when the Dweller on the Threshold and the Angel
of the Presence face each other. This constitutes the final pair
of opposites.
The Dweller on the Threshold is oft regarded as a disaster,
as a horror to be avoided, and as a final and culminating evil.
I would here remind you, nevertheless, that the Dweller is
"one who stands before the gate of God", who dwells in the
shadow of the portal of initiation, and who faces the Angel
of the Presence open-eyed, as the ancient Scriptures call it.
The Dweller can be defined as the sum total of the forces of
the lower nature as expressed in the personality, prior to il-
lumination, to inspiration and to initiation. The personality
per se, is, at this stage, exceedingly potent, and the Dweller
embodies all the psychic and mental forces which, down the
ages, have been unfolded in a man and nurtured with care.
It can be looked upon as the potency of the threefold material
form, prior to its conscious cooperation and dedication to
the life of the soul and to the service of the Hierarchy, of
God, and of humanity.
The Dweller on the Threshold is all that a man is, apart
from the higher spiritual self; it is the third aspect of divinity
as expressed in and through the human mechanism. This third
aspect must be eventually subordinated to the second aspect,
the soul.
The two great contrasting forces, the Angel and the
Dweller, are brought together––face to face––and the final
conflict takes place. Again, you will note, that it is a meeting
and battle between another and a higher pair of opposites.
The aspirant, therefore, has three pairs of opposites with
which to deal as he progresses towards light and liberation:
 The Ray of Personality 313
THE PAIRS OF OPPOSITES
1. Upon the physical plane.......The dense and etheric
forces.
These are faced upon the Path of Purification.
2. Upon the astral plane.........The well-known dualities.
These are faced upon the Path of Discipleship.
3. Upon the mental plane.........The Angel of the Presence
and the Dweller on the
Threshold.
These are faced upon the Path of Initiation.
b. DEVELOPMENT AND ALIGNMENT OF THE BODIES
After these preliminary remarks, we can come now to a
study of the previous tabulation in connection with the
method whereby the soul appropriates the various bodies,
how they are developed and inter-related, and finally how
coordination and alignment is brought about. The last part
of the tabulation was outlined in such a manner that many
of the problems facing the psychologist at this time can be
dealt with from an esoteric angle, and perhaps some light on
these problems may then be forthcoming.
In the current occult literature, the careful student will
come to the conclusion that the emphasis has been laid upon
the process whereby the ego or soul draws to itself the form,
utilizing for that purpose a mental unit and two permanent
atoms, thus anchoring itself in three worlds of human expe-
rience. The matter, or rather the substance, aspect has been
the subject of immediate importance. Hence this subject was
covered in my earlier books which are intended to aid in the
bridging process between the older "techniques of understand-
ing" and the esotericism which the new age will sponsor. We
should, however, bear in mind two things:
1. That such terms as "mental unit", "permanent atom", etc.,
Esoteric Astrology by Alice A. Bailey, 1951
Eleventh printing 1976 (3rd Paperback Edition)
The Zodiac and the Rays 55
3. Upon the mental plane the Angel of the Presence and
the Dweller on the Threshold are brought face to face.
Their synthesis is brought about upon the Path of
Initiation.
What is true of man in this connection is true also of
humanity as a whole, of the planetary Logos of the Earth,
as of all planetary Logoi, and of a solar Logos. The an-
alogy between the fusion of the pairs of opposites, for in-
stance, upon the physical plane can be seen in the conscious
and directed fusion of the planetary forces with the energy
of any specific planet or group of planets. The analogy,
involving discrimination to regulate and offset the force of
the pairs of opposites upon the astral plane, can be seen
when the energies of the sun sign and of the planets are per-
fectly directed and adjusted. The analogy can also be
carried forward onto the mental plane and when the ener-
gies of the sun sign and the rising sign are coherently
blended and expressed (in the case of both the individual
or a planetary Life) there comes a point of crisis wherein
the soul and the personality are brought face to face. The
Angel of the Presence, distributing solar fire and holding
focused electric fire, and the Dweller on the Threshold,
expressing and utilizing fire by friction, know each other
"with intimate occult knowledge." The door then stands
open wide through which the life and light of the three
major constellations can––after the third initiation––be
occultly available to the initiate, be he a liberated human
being or a planetary Logos.
When astrologers understand the true significance of
the constellation Gemini, the Twins, and the dual forces
which pour through this sign (the "forces in conflict" as
they are sometimes called or "the quarreling brothers")
164 A Treatise on the Seven Rays
him and the "doors of entrance" into all of them stand
wide open. On the Mutable Cross and on the Fixed Cross
we have the so-called green ray, controlling not only the
daily life of karmic liability upon the path of evolution, but
also controlling the experiences and processes of evolution.
The reason for this is that Capricorn is an earth sign and
because the third and fifth rays work pre-eminently through
this sign, embodying the third major aspect of divinity,
active intelligence plus that of its subsidiary power, the fifth
Ray of Mind. These pour through Capricorn to Saturn and
to Venus and so reach our planet, the Earth. Saturn is one
of the most potent of the four Lords of Karma and forces
man to face up to the past, and in the present to prepare
for the future. Such is the intention and purpose of karmic
opportunity. From certain angles, Saturn can be regarded
as the planetary Dweller on the Threshold, for humanity
as a whole has to face that Dweller as well as the Angel
of the Presence, and in so doing discover that both the
Dweller and the Angel are that complex duality which is
the human family. Saturn, in a peculiar relation to the sign
Gemini, makes this possible. Individual man makes this
discovery and faces the two extremes whilst in the sign
Capricorn; the fourth and fifth Creative Hierarchies do
the same thing in Libra.
Through Saturn and Venus, therefore, Capricorn is con-
nected with Libra and also with Gemini and Taurus, and
these four constellations––Taurus, Gemini, Libra and
Capricorn––constitute a potent quaternary of energies and
between them produce those conditions and situations which
will enable the initiate to demonstrate his readiness and
capacity for initiation. They are called the "Guardians of
the Four Secrets."
The Nature of Esoteric Astrology 207
a faculty of the mind, as is so oft supposed, but it is
essentially a creative power. It is basically an aspect of
thought and––coupled with imagination––is a creative agent
because thoughts are things, as well you know. From an-
cient recesses of the memory, from a deeply rooted past
which is definitely recalled, and from the racial and the
individual subconscious (or founded and established thought
reservoirs and desires, inherited and inherent) there
emerges from individual past lives and experience that which
is the sumtotal of all instinctual tendencies, of all inherited
glamours and of all phases of wrong mental attitudes; to
these (as they constitute a blended whole) we give the
name of the Dweller on the Threshold. This Dweller is the
sumtotal of all the personality characteristics which have
remained unconquered and unsubdued and which must be
finally overcome before initiation can be taken. Each life
sees some progress made; some personality defects straight-
ened out and some real advance effected. But the uncon-
quered residue and the ancient liabilities are numerous and
excessively potent and––when soul contact is adequately
established––there eventuates a life wherein the highly de-
veloped and powerful personality becomes, in itself, the
Dweller on the Threshold. Then the Angel of the Presence
and the Dweller stand face to face and something must then
be done. Eventually, the light of the personal self fades
out and wanes in the blaze of glory which emanates from
the Angel. Then the greater glory obliterates the lesser.
This is, however, only possible when the personality eagerly
enters into this relation with the Angel, recognizes itself as
the Dweller and––as a disciple––begins the battle between
the pairs of opposites and enters into the tests of Scorpio.
These tests and trials are ever self-initiated; the disciple
puts himself into the positive or conditioning environment
208 A Treatise on the Seven Rays
wherein the trials and the discipline are unavoidable and
inevitable. When the mind has reached a relatively high
stage of development, the memory aspect is evoked in a new
and conscious manner and then every latent pre-disposition,
every racial and national instinct, every unconquered situa-
tion and every controlling fault rises to the surface of con-
sciousness and then––the fight is on. The keynote of Scorpio
is, however, Triumph. This is its major expression upon
the physical plane. As a result of struggle and of victory,
the whole divine man––not yet perfectly expressing himself,
if I might word the situation thus––is anchored upon the
physical plane with such accuracy and clarity that there is no
escape from the environing conclusions of the disciple's
family, friends and group that he is a disciple. From that
angle he is meticulously watched; he learns the meaning of
the word "example"; he is pilloried by those who are on-
lookers and the first conscious stages toward group aware-
ness and group response, plus group service, are now taken.
Such is the outcome and the reward of the experience in
Scorpio.
It is in this sign that the prodigal son comes to himself,
and having eaten of the husks of life and having exhausted
the resources of worldly desire and ambition––he says: "I
will rise and go to my Father." There are two such major
crises in the life of the aspirant:
1. When the intelligent man of the world comes to himself
and then re-orients himself to the soul and its require-
ments. This leads to the tests in Scorpio.
2. When the initiate of the third degree––upon a higher
turn of the spiral––re-orients himself to the Monad
and passes through most subtle tests to certain unde-
The Nature of Esoteric Astrology 209
finable and spiritual recognitions. Upon these we need
not enlarge.
There is little for me to add here in connection with the fact
that Scorpio is upon one of the four arms of the Fixed
Cross. In the study of previous signs, much anent the Fixed
Cross has already been covered and there is no need for me
to repeat the information here. Desire in Taurus becomes
spiritual aspiration in Scorpio. The darkness of the experi-
ence in Scorpio becomes illumination in Taurus, for it must
never be forgotten that where the pairs of opposites are
concerned they gain and profit from each other, for there
is a direct line of force and of contact between the two.
This is a fact which is seldom recognized.
We come now to a consideration of the Rulers which
govern the sign, Scorpio. Their influence is potent in the
lives of the average or undeveloped man who responds more
easily to the planetary influences in the twelve houses of his
personality horoscope than does the more advanced man
who is coming under the direct influence of the zodiacal
signs. Through these Rulers, two rays are brought into a
potent controlling position in Scorpio; they are the sixth
Ray of Devotion and the fourth Ray of Harmony through
Conflict, the latter having a peculiar relation to the mode
of human development and the former to the methods of
the Piscean age which is just passing. Mars and Mercury
control and Mars is particularly active, owing to the fact
that Mars is both the orthodox planet controlling the per-
sonality in Scorpio and also the esoteric planet conditioning
the unfoldment of the disciple. Mars is the dominating fac-
tor in the tests and trials of the disciple, prior to the expe-
rience in Sagittarius and the initiation in Capricorn, and this
for the following reasons:
 Esoteric Healing by Alice A. Bailey, 1953
Eleventh Printing, 1984 (5th Paperback Edition)
The Process of Restitution 443
true relationship and intercourse between the sexes. I refer
not here to the work of clairvoyants, no matter how poor,
nor to the taking possession of the body by entities of high
caliber, but of the unpleasant phenomena of the materializa-
tion seance of ectoplasm and the blind unintelligent work
done by the old Atlantean degenerates and earthbound souls,
the average Indian chief and guide. There is nothing to
be learned from them, and much to be avoided.
The reign of the fear of death is well-nigh ended and
we shall soon enter upon a period of knowledge and of cer-
tainty which will cut the ground from under all our fears.
In dealing with the fear of death, there is little to be done
except to raise the whole subject onto a more scientific level,
and––in this scientific sense––teach people to die. There
is a technique of dying just as there is of living, but this
technique has been lost very largely in the West, and is
almost lost except in a few centers of Knowers in the East.
More of this can perhaps be dealt with later, but the thought
of the needed approach to this subject can rest in the minds
of students who read this, and perhaps as they study and
read and think, material of interest will come their way
which could be gradually assembled and published.
A Treatise on White Magic, pages 301-302.
Fear of death and depression constitute for man the
Dweller on the Threshold in this age and cycle. Both of
them indicate sentient reaction to psychological factors and
cannot be dealt with by the use of another factor such as
courage. They must be met by the omniscience of the soul,
working through the mind––not by its omnipotence. In this
is to be found an occult hint.
A Treatise on White Magic, page 309.
The instinct of self-preservation has its roots in an
innate fear of death; through the presence of this fear, the
The Processes of Integration 507
3. The personality life of the now coordinated individual
persists for a large number of lives and also falls into
three phases:
a. The phase of a dominant aggressive personality life,
basically conditioned by its ray type, selfish in nature
and very individualistic.
b. A transitional phase wherein a conflict rages between
personality and soul. The soul begins to seek libera-
tion from form life and yet––in the last analysis––
the personality is dependent upon the life principle,
conferred by the soul. Wording it otherwise, the
conflict between the soul ray and the personality ray
starts and the war is on between two focussed aspects
of energy. This conflict terminates at the third
initiation.
c. The control by the soul is the final phase, leading to
the death and destruction of the personality. This
death begins when the personality, the Dweller on
the Threshold, stands before the Angel of the
Presence. The light of the solar Angel then obliter-
ates the light of matter.
The "control" phase is conditioned by the complete
identification of the personality with the soul; this is a re-
versal of the previous identification of the soul with the
personality. This also is what we mean when speaking of
the integration of these two; the two are now one. It was
of this phase that St. Paul was speaking when he referred
(in the Epistle to the Ephesians) to Christ making "out
of two, one new man." It is primarily the phase of the final
stages of the Probationary Path (where the work con-
sciously begins) and its carrying forward to completion
upon the Path of Discipleship. It is the stage of the prac-
tical and successful server; it is that wherein the entire focus
 The Processes of Integration 515
The Elimination of the Personality Thoughtform
In dealing with this subject (and it can only be done
very briefly) two things must be borne in mind:
1. That we are considering solely an idea in the mind of
the soul and dealing with the basic fact of the illusion
which has controlled the entire cycle of incarnation and
so held the soul a prisoner to form. To the soul, the
personality connotes two things:
a. The soul's capacity for identification with form;
this is first of all realized by the soul when the per-
sonality is beginning to react to a measure of real
integration.
b. An opportunity for initiation.
2. That the elimination of the thoughtform of the per-
sonality, which is consummated at the third initiation,
is a great initiation for the soul on its own plane. For
this reason, the third initiation is regarded as the first
major initiation, since the two previous initiations have
very little effect upon the soul and only affect the incar-
nated soul, the "fragment" of the whole.
These are facts which are little realized and seldom empha-
sized in any of the literature hitherto published. The empha-
sis up till now has been upon the initiations as they affect
the disciple in the three worlds. But I am specifically dealing
with the initiations as they affect or do not affect the soul,
overshadowing its reflection, the personality, in the three
worlds. What I have said, therefore, will have little mean-
ing for the average reader.
From the angle of the personal self, regarding itself as
the Dweller on the Threshold, the attitude or state of mind
has been inadequately portrayed as one of complete oblitera-
tion in the light of the soul; the glory of the Presence, trans-
516 Esoteric Healing
muted by the Angel, is such that the personality completely
disappears, with its demands and its aspirations. Naught
is left but the shell, the sheath. and the instrument through
which the solar light can pour for the helping of humanity.
This is true to a certain degree, but is only––in the last
analysis––man's attempt to put into words the transmuting
and the transfiguring effect of the third initiation, which
cannot be done.
Infinitely more difficult is the attempt I am here making
to depict the attitude and the reactions of the soul, the one
self, the Master in the heart, as it recognizes the stupendous
fact of its own essential liberation and realizes, once and
for all, that it is now incapable of responding in any way to
the lower vibrations of the three worlds, as transmitted to
the soul by its instrument of contact, the personality form.
That form is now incapable of such transmission.
The second reaction of the soul, once this realization has
been focussed and admitted, is that––having achieved free-
dom––that freedom now conveys its own demands:
1. For a life of service in the three worlds, so familiar
and now so completely transcended.
2. An overshadowing sense of outgoing love towards
those who are, as yet, seeking liberation.
3. A recognition of the essential triangle which has now
become the center of the conceptual life of the soul:
* Hierarchy
/|
/ |
/ |
/ |
Soul * / |
\ |
\ |
\ |
\|
*Humanity
 The Laws and Rules Enumerated and Applied 639
I have several times used the expression "isolated form,"
for it is this peculiar aspect of isolation which conditions
the physical body of a man (or of any living form, for that
matter), rendering it detached, coherent and temporarily
living its own life in response to the imposition of the living-
ness of the incarnating soul. Temporarily, the united power
of the segregated and isolated atoms––particularly the
planetary structure of the spirit of the earth––is in abey-
ance as regards individual reaction to the planetary life.
Only the coherent, magnetic qualities persist in any form
of activity and in conjunction with the will-to-live of the
spiritual man or of any ensouling entity. This creates a
coherent form, held together by two aspects of livingness:
that of the spirit of the earth and that of the spiritual man.
Therefore––to use words in an effort to arrive at under-
standing––two aspects of life and two forms of will or pur-
pose are brought together. The higher is evolutionary; the
lower is involutionary in nature. It is this which creates the
conflict. One type of energy is evolutionary and the other
is involutionary. It is these conflicting forces which present
the problem of dualism––a dualism of the higher and the
lower at many differing and varying stages. The final phase
of the conflict is fought out, or rather wrought out, when
the Dweller on the Threshold and the Angel of the Presence
face each other. It is in that consummating event that the
pull or conflict between the involutionary life and the evolu-
tionary life, between the inchoate, magnetic will of the ele-
mental forces (inherent in the atoms of which all three
bodies of the personality are made) and the will of the
spiritual man, on the verge of liberation from the magnetic
control of substance, is brought to the issue.
The spirit of the earth has its correspondence in the
created expression of the spiritual man; it is to be found
in the existence of the personality elemental; this personality
640 Esoteric Healing
elemental can be and frequently is an inchoate force, swayed
entirely by desire, and no true personality integration is
present; it can, however, be a highly organized and potent
factor, producing what is called a high grade personality
and an effective instrument for the spiritual man in the
three worlds of his evolution. This is followed later by
the conflicts upon the Path of Discipleship and the Path
of Initiation. Then the livingness of the spiritual man, and
his will to manifest divinely, dominate to such an extent that
the death of the personality is brought about; this culminates
at the time of the third initiation. At that experience the
monadic will comes in with such dynamic potency that the
will of the elemental lives of the threefold personality is
completely negated.
But (to return to our theme) the atomic substance,
impregnated with the life of the spirit of the earth and
with the driving force of its inchoate will, demonstrates as
magnetic power and is constantly in conflict, within the body
of manifestation of the informing soul, with the life of the
soul. This conflict or friction is the main cause of what
you call disease.
Disease is inharmony; it is the fault of fire by friction;
diseased areas are areas of friction wherein the atomic sub-
stance is temporarily asserting its own type of livingness and
responding (sometimes to the point of death) to the mag-
netic pull of the will of the spirit of the earth. If that pull
proves adequately strong, the friction within the atomic
structure, localized in the area of some etheric center, will
be of such a nature that the quality of the disease increases,
the life of the spiritual man is slowly or rapidly withdrawn;
the desire for existence, the spiritual will-to-be is not then
as strong as the will to be reabsorbed––the will of the atoms
constituting the physical body; the man, therefore, dies, in
the usual sense of the term.
666 Esoteric Healing
upon which to work; there will be nothing they can influence,
and no mode of influencing man will then exist as far as evil
is concerned. I cannot expect you at this time to compre-
hend the meaning of my words. They are, however, related
to the words in the Great Invocation which say, "and seal
the door where evil dwells." There is a door into an evil
realm and into blackness, just as there is a door into a world
of goodness and light; the devil is to man who is dedicated
and consecrated to evil what the Dweller on the Threshold
is to the spiritual aspirant.
The main task of the spiritual Hierarchy has ever been
to stand between the Forces of Evil and humanity, to bring
imperfection into the light so that evil can "find no place"
for action, and to keep the door open into the spiritual
realm. This the Hierarchy has done, with small help from
humanity; this situation is now changed and the world war
was the symbol and the guarantee of that change; in it the
Forces of Light, the massed United Nations, fought the
Forces of Evil upon the physical plane and routed them.
There has been a far greater spiritual significance to the war
than has yet been realized. It marked a world turning point;
it reoriented humanity towards the good; it drove back
the Forces of Evil and made definitely clear (and this was
new and needed) the true distinction between good and
evil, and this not in a theological sense––as stated by the
church commentators––but practically and obviously. It is
evidenced by the disastrous economic situation and by the
greed of prominent men in every country. The world of men
(through the obviousness of the distinction between good
and evil) has awakened to the fact of materialistic exploita-
tion, to the lack of real freedom and to the rights, as yet
unclaimed, of the individual. Man's ability to resist slavery
has become apparent everywhere. That the strugglers to-
wards freedom are employing wrong methods and are en-
The Rays and the Initiations by Alice A. Bailey, 1960
Seventh Printing, 1988 (4th Paperback Edition)
THE FOURTEEN RULES FOR GROUP INITIATION 39
One, I would call your attention to the fact that the initiate
has faced two major tests, symbolically described as "the
burning ground" and the "clear cold light." Only after he
has successfully passed these can he––or the group, when
consldering group initiation––move forward and outward
into the wider reaches of the divine consciousness. These
tests are applied when the soul grips the personality and
the fire of divine love destroys the loves and desires of the
integrated personality. Two factors tend to bring this about:
the slow moving forward of the innate conscience into
greater control, and the steady development of the "fiery
aspiration" to which Patanjali* makes reference. These two
factors, when brought into living activity, bring the disciple
into the centre of the burning ground which separates the
Angel of the Presence from the Dweller on the Threshold.
The burning ground is found upon the threshold of every
new advance, until the third initiation has been taken.
The "clear cold light" is the light of pure reason, of
infallible intuitive perception and its unremitting, inten-
sive and revealing light constitutes a major test in its effects.
The initiate discovers the depths of evil, and at the same
time is enticed forward by the heights of a growing sense of
divinity. The clear cold light reveals two things:
A. The omnipresence of God throughout nature, and
therefore throughout the entire personality life of the initi-
ate or of the initiate group. The scales fall from the eyes,
bringing about––paradoxically––the "dark night of the soul"
and the sense of being alone and bereft of all help. This led
(in the case of the Christ, for instance) to that appalling
moment in the Garden of Gethsemane, and which was con-
summated on the Cross, when the will of personality-soul
clashed with the divine will of the Monad. The revelation
to the initiate of the ages of severance from the Central
Reality, and of all its attendant implications, descends upon
the one who is attempting to stand "in isolated Unity," as
Patanjali (to quote him a second time) calls the experience.+
––––––––––
* The Light of the Soul (Book II, Sutra I) page 119.
+ Ibid. (Book IV, Sutras 25,34) pages 420,428.
 THE FOURTEEN RULES FOR GROUP INITIATION 103
form. This is a somewhat new attitude which he is asked
to take, because hitherto the emphasis upon his focus has
been to regard himself as the soul, reincarnating when desire
calls and withdrawing when need arises. The group life as
a whole is here needed to make possible this shift in realiza-
tion away from form and consciousness to the will and life
aspect or principle. When this has begun to take place, one
of the first recognitions of the initiate-disciple is that form,
and his consciousness of form and its contacts (which we
call knowledge), have in themselves produced a great thought-
form which has summed up in itself his entire relation to
form, to existence and experience in the three worlds, to
matter, to desire and to all that incarnation has brought
him. The whole matter looms, therefore, over-large in his
consciousness. The detaching of himself from this ancient
thoughtform––the final form which the Dweller on the
Threshold takes––is called by him Death. Only at the fourth
initiation does he realize that death is nothing but the
severing of a thread which links him to the ring-pass-not
within which he has chosen to circumscribe himself. He
discovers that the "last enemy to be destroyed" is brought to
that final destruction by the first aspect in himself, the
Father or Monad (which moved originally to create that
form), the Life, the Breath, the directing energizing Will.
It is the will that, in the last analysis, produces orientation,
focus, emphasis, the world of form, and above all else (be-
cause of its relation to the world of cause), the world of
meaning.
Average man lives and has his being in the world of
meaning; the initiate and the Master have their focus in
the world of Being. They are then naught but will, illu-
mined by love which links them with the world of meaning,
and capable of intelligent activity which links them with the
world of form, and is the indication of life. But the desire
of the initiate is not now for activity, or even for the expres-
sion of love. These qualities are integral parts of his equip-
ment and expression but have dropped below the threshold
of consciousness (a higher correspondence of the auto-
THE FOURTEEN RULES FOR GROUP INITIATION 199
Master of the Masters, the Christ, except in so far as it en-
ables the divine Participator Himself to face another area
of darkness, veiling and hiding a still more supernal glory.
The above paragraph is far beyond the comprehension of
the average student, but will be comprehended by those
whose eyes are open to be blinded.
Students must remember that the four veils upon the
etheric plane are only the lower symbolic correspondences
to certain great areas of divine expression, and that ever the
glory must be approached through the darkness. Such is
the Law. These higher veiling factors can be mentioned and
enumerated, but more information concerning these mys-
teries, this separating darkness encountered by the initiate,
may not be given:
VEIL I. That which faces the disciple as he wrestles
with the Dweller on the Threshold and becomes con-
scious of the Angel of the Presence though as yet he
sees Him not.
VEIL II. That which the initiate encounters at the
fourth initiation and which forces him to cry out in
his blindness: "My God, my God, why hast Thou for-
saken me." The words uttered by the Christ at that
time, and as the Participator, have been forgotten by
the orthodox, though preserved by the esotericist. To
them H.P.B. refers in The Secret Doctrine.
VEIL III. That mysterious blindness which overwhelms
the initiate when––as the Embodiment of all the forces
of the Spiritual Triad––He faces the Monad and is
impelled forward by the "devastating Will" of the first
aspect. Of this I may not write. It concerns the sixth
and seventh initiations.
VEIL IV. That "unknown impenetrable Void, the utter
darkness of negation" which Those Who are in the
Council Chamber of the Lord of the World and Who
are focused in Shamballa face when the time comes
for Them to "negate" our planetary life-expression and
experience altogether. They must then leave behind
all the seven planes of spiritual and human experi-
 From Bethlehem to Calvary by Alice A. Bailey, 1937
Sixth printing, 1976 (2nd Paperback Edition)
118 From Bethlehem to Calvary
of the lower nature; it is upon the mind that the Word
sounds forth, carrying illumination and insight, distorted as
yet though the vision may be, and the light scarcely seen.
But the Word is there. Some day each of us can say with
power: "It is written," and see that Word expressed in every
part of our human nature as individuals and––at some dis-
tant date––in humanity itself. This is the "lost Word" of
the Masonic tradition.
Oriental philosophy refers frequently to four spheres of
life or four problems which all disciples and aspirants have
to face, and which constitute in their entirety the world in
which we live. There are the world of Maya, the world of
glamour and the world of illusion. There is also that mysteri-
ous "Dweller on the Threshold" to which Bulwer Lytton
refers in Zanoni. All of these four Christ met and vanquished
in the desert-experience.
Maya refers to the world of physical forces in which we
dwell, and with this the first temptation concerned itself.
Modern science has told us that there is nothing visible or
invisible which is not energy, and that every form is simply
an aggregate of energy units in constant ceaseless motion, to
which we have to adjust ourselves and in which we "live
and move and have our being."39 Such is the outer form of
Deity, and we are part of it. Maya is vital in character, and
we know little of its effect upon the physical plane (with
all that that term connotes), and upon the human being.
"Glamour" refers to the world of emotional being and of
desire, in which all forms dwell. It is this glamour which
colors all our lives and produces false values, wrong desires,
needless so-called necessities, our worries, anxieties and cares;
but glamour is age-old, and has us in so close a grip that
there seems little we can do. The desires of men, down the
centuries, have brought about a situation before which we
turn back appalled; the rampant nature of our longings and
wishes, and their glamourous effect upon the individual, pro-
vide psychological laboratories with all their material; the
39
Acts, XVII, 28.
The Second Initiation 119
wish life of the race has been wrongly oriented and human
desire has been turned outward to the material plane, thus
producing the world of glamour in which we all habitually
struggle. It is by far the most potent of our delusions or mis-
taken orientations. But once the clear light of the soul is
thrown into it, this miasma of forces is gradually dissipated.
This work constitutes the major task of all aspirants to the
mysteries.
"Illusion" is more mental in its impact. It concerns the
ideas whereby we live, and the thought life which more or
less (although mostly less) governs our daily undertakings.
We shall see, as we take up the consideration of these three
temptations, how in the first temptation Christ was con-
fronted by maya, with physical forces of such strength that
the devil could take advantage of them in an effort to con-
found Him. We shall see how in the second temptation He
was tempted by glamour, and with the submergence of His
vital spiritual life by a misconception and an emotional use
of His divine powers. The sin of the mind, which is pride,
was called into activity by the devil in the third temptation,
and the illusion of temporal power to be used for right ends
we may be sure was presented to Him. Thus the possible
interior weakness of the three aspects of Christ's nature was
tested, and through them the vast sum total of the world
maya, glamour and illusion was poured in on Him. Thus
He was confronted with the Dweller on the Threshold,
which is only another name for the personal lower self, re-
garding it as a unified whole, as is only the case in advanced
people, disciples and initiates. In these three words––maya,
glamour and illusion––we have synonyms for the flesh, the
world and the devil, which constitute the threefold test
that confronts every son of God on the verge of liberation.
"If thou be the Son of God command that these stone
be made bread." Let us use our divine powers for personal
physical ends. Let us put the material physical nature first.
Let us assuage our hunger, whatever it may be, and do it
because we are divine. Let us use our divine powers so as
 The Light of the Soul by Alice A. Bailey, 1927
Thirteenth Printing, 1989 (5th Paperback Edition)
20 BOOK I
and are consequently dissipated when attention
is directed elsewhere.
"Energy follows thought" is a basic tenet of
the Raja Yoga system and is true even where
these images of fancy are concerned. These
fancied images fall primarily into three groups,
which the student would do well to consider.
1. Those thought forms which he constructs
himself, which have an evanescent life and which
are dependent upon the quality of his desires; be-
ing therefore neither good nor evil, low nor high,
can be vitalized by low tendencies or idealistic
aspirations, with all the intermediate stages to
be found between these extremes. The aspirant
has to guard himself in order that he may not
mistake these for reality. An illustration might
well be given here, in respect to the facility with
which people judge they have seen one of the
Brothers (or Masters of the Wisdom), whereas
all they have perceived is a thought form of one
of Them; the wish being father to the thought
they are the victim of that form of incorrect per-
ception called by Patanjali, fancy.
2. Those thought forms which are created by
the race, the nation, the group or the organiza-
tion. Group thought forms of any kind (from
the planetary form to that constructed by any
band of thinkers) form the sum total of the "great
illusion." Herein lies a hint to the earnest as-
pirant.
3. That thought form created by a man since
his first appearance in physical form, and called
the "Dweller on the Threshold." Being created
BOOK I 21
by the lower personal self and not by the soul,
it is impermanent and is simply held together by
the man's lower energy. When the man begins
to function as the soul this "image" he has creat-
ed, through his "fancy" or his reaction to delusion,
is dissipated by a supreme exertion. It has no
real existence once there is nothing in the aspir-
ant to feed it, and the realization of this enables
him to free himself from its thraldom.
This is one of the sutras which, though ap-
parently short and simple, is of the most pro-
found significance; it is studied by high initiates
who are learning the nature of the creative proc-
ess of the planet, and who are concerned with the
dissipation of planetary maya.
10. Passivity (sleep) is based upon the
quiescent state of the vrittis (or upon the non-
perception of the senses).
Some explanation as to the nature of the vrittis
is perhaps necessary here. The vrittis are those
activities of the mind which eventuate in the con-
scious relation between the sense employed and
that which is sensed. Apart from a certain modi-
fication of the mental process or an assertion of
the I-am-I realization, the senses might be ac-
tive yet the man be unaware of them. The man
is aware that he sees, tastes or hears; he says,
"I see, I taste, I hear," and it is the activity of
the vrittis (or those mental perceptions which
have relation to the five senses) which enables
him to recognize the fact. By withdrawing him-
self from active sense perception, by no longer
276 BOOK III
graphic film, registering all the desires and earth
experiences of our planet. Those who perceive
it will see pictured thereon:
1. The life experiences of every human being
since time began,
2. The reactions to experience of the entire
animal kingdom,
3. The aggregation of the thought-forms of a
kamic nature (based on desire) of every human
unit throughout time. Herein lies the great de-
ception of the records. Only a trained occultist
can distinguish between actual experience and
those astral pictures created by imagination and
keen desire.
4. The planetary "Dweller on the Threshold"
with all that appertains to that term and all the
aggregations of forms which are to be found in
its environment.
The trained seer has learnt to dissociate that
which pertains to his own aura and the aura of
the planet (which is in actuality the akashic rec-
ord). He can distinguish between those records
which are:
a. Planetary,
b. Hierarchical or pertaining to the work of
the twelve Creative Hierarchies as they bring to
concretion the plan of the Logos.
c. Imaginative forms, the result of the desire-
thought activity of the myriads of men, animated
by desire for some form of experience or other.
d. The historical record pertaining to races,
nations, groups and families in their two great
divisions on the physical plane and on the astral.